Player Bio
| HT/WT: 6-4, 305 lbs |
| Birthplace: Shawnee, KS |
| Age: 23 |
| School: Kansas State |
| Experience: R |
Next Game
-
1:03Expectations for Panthers Rookies After Division Win
-
9:39JP Acosta Breaks Down 2026's Instant Impact Rookies
-
1:13Panthers' Biggest Draft Steal: C Sam Hecht
-
9:04Biggest Questions for the NFC South After the 2026 Draft
-
1:04WR That Will Out-Perform Projections in Week 1
-
2:34Week 2 CFB Top 25 Picks: No. 18 Tennessee at Georgia Tech
-
1:40NFL Betting Guide: Season-Long Survivor Strategy Tips
-
1:33NFL Betting Guide: Best ATS Bet For Week 1
-
1:57C.J. Stroud Looks for Bounce-Back in Contract Year
-
1:36Week 1 NFL Picks: Bears at Panthers
-
0:58Mid-Round WR is Better Than Mid-Round RB
-
0:36Most Impactful Player in the NFC South: Bryce Young
-
11:46Biggest Post-Camp Questions in the NFC South
-
1:19Joey Porter Jr. Landing Spots: New Orleans Saints
-
1:14Fantasy Football: Best & Worst Round 5 Picks
-
1:30Fantasy Football: Best & Worst Picks in Round 4
-
0:53Burning Fantasy Questions No. 9: Most Intriguing RB Battle
-
1:48Best Bet for Week 1's Sunday Slate
-
0:58NFL Fact or Fiction: Bengals Earn Top Two Seed in AFC
-
1:51Ranking the Best Week 1 NFL Games No. 5: Bears vs Panthers
Top Sam Hecht News
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Panthers' Sam Hecht: Picked by Panthers
The Panthers selected Hecht in the fifth round of the 2026 NFL Draft, 144th overall.
Hecht only emerged as starter in his fourth and fifth seasons at Kansas State, but he played very well from that point and otherwise logged pre-draft athletic testing with mostly good results. At 6-foot-4, 303 pounds Hecht has only an average frame by center standards, though, and his 31 and 5/8-inch arms grade as only 13th percentile among centers, according to Mockdraftable. Second-round pick Logan Jones of the Bears had even shorter arms yet, but Jones is something like a 90th-percentile athlete at center while Hecht is probably only something more like a 65th-percentile athlete at center. Either way, there's still a plenty good chance Hecht emerges as an average or better starting center for Carolina, including potentially as soon as 2026. Luke Fortner is the only competition otherwise, and Hecht might be better as a rookie.
... See More ... See Less -
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-






















