The Chicago Bears selected Stanford tight end Sam Roush with the 69th overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.
Roush, who stands at 6-foot-6 and weighs 267 pounds, will bring toughness and physicality to Ben Johnson’s offense. He’s also an elite blocker with plenty of upside. He’ll serve as a blocking tight end to last year’s top-10 pick Colston Loveland and veteran Cole Kmet.
Here’s a quick rundown on Roush:
The Basics
Height: 6-foot-6
Weight: 267 pounds
Age: 22
From: Nashville, TN
Breakdown
One of few tight ends in this class who is a plus blocker from day one. Very, very short arms may cause some trouble with blocking NFL assignments but he has the power and burst to get there. Transitions out of breaks well in route running. Not elusive in the open field but strong enough to break tackles against smaller defenders. Lacks production from college. — Aryton Ostley
Dane Brugler’s Scouting Report
A three-year starter at Stanford, Roush worked primarily inline as an attached Y tight end in former head coach Frank Reich’s offense. After not playing football until high school, he made up for lost time and produced improved tape each season — as both a receiver and blocker — for the Cardinal. He doesn’t have much “wow” on that tape, but his combine performance opened some eyes.
With his rugby background, Roush prides himself on trying to be the toughest and most physical player on the field. He works to center his blocks and strains to sustain, even moving defensive linemen against their will at times. As a pass catcher, his quickness at the snap helps him uncover in the short-to-intermediate parts of the field, although his catch-point consistency must improve (12.5 percent drop rate in 2025).
They Said It
“He’s a finisher through the whistle. I think that showed up on a consistent basis. It didn’t matter who he was blocking, could be a big guy, could be a little DB, and he consistently finished through the whistle each and every play. You always love it when you when you take a player and you get a text message from somebody, one of his coaches at Stanford, said, ‘He will crush himself to do whatever he can to help the football team.’ And it just verifies what you all already thought about the player. So, feel good about that one.” — HC Ben Johnson
RAS card
Grade: C
Roush was an unnecessary choice, not because he’s a bad player but the tight end position was not one of need, and there were plenty of options available at other needs. Chicago had opportunities to bring in an offensive tackle, or edge rusher, potentially even a wide receiver if they wanted an offensive weapon, but they decided to bring in a guy who will be the third tight end on the depth chart from the start. Roush didn’t jump off the paper in box scores, and feels more as a short-field threat than a deep threat, but head coach Ben Johnson proved he knew what he was doing with the selection with Loveland last season, so only time will tell. — Mike Pendleton
Highlights
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This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Breakdown and analysis of new Bears rookie Sam Roush
Reporting by Alyssa Barbieri, Bears Wire / Bears Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
