Several NFL stars have traded the gridiron for The Bachelor rose ceremonies long before Sam Hartman kicks off his journey on season 30.
“I think anybody in their right mind, if you get told, ‘Hey, you got a chance to go find the love of your life,’ [would say yes],” Hartman, the quarterback for the Washington Commanders, said on Good Morning America in November 2026. “I know one thing: When people are saying ‘I do,’ they don’t ask where you met; they just ask if you wanna do it forever. I don’t see any problem with that.”
Hartman further noted that he was initially apprehensive about taking over the Bachelor mantle until speaking with show host Jesse Palmer, who previously held the role in 2004 amid his own NFL career.
“I got really lucky and talked to Jesse Palmer and he kind of gave me the insight, what it is and what it’s not,” Hartman added.
In addition to Palmer and Hartman, several former NFL stars have also handed out roses on The Bachelor. In addition, leads Sean Lowe, Matt James and Grant Ellis all played collegiate ball, as did Bachelorette contestants Tyler Cameron and Andrew Spencer. Spencer’s cousin, Clay Harbor, also played in the NFL years before appearing on Becca Kufrin’s season 14.
Keep scrolling to see which NFL stars have been the Bachelor:
Jesse Palmer
Disney/Bahareh Ritter
Palmer was drafted by the New York Giants in 2001 as a quarterback. After playing with the Giants for four seasons, Palmer signed with the San Francisco 49ers practice squad in 2005. He retired later that year, transitioning to a broadcast career.
Amid his football career, Palmer led The Bachelor season 5, which aired in 2004. He ended the show in a relationship with Jessica Bowlin, which only lasted a few months.
Colton Underwood
ABC/Josh Vertucci via Everett Collection
Underwood went undrafted in 2014 before signing with the San Diego Chargers practice squad. He also spent time with the Philadelphia Eagles and Oakland Raiders before retiring in 2016.
After appearing on Kufrin’s Bachelorette season in 2018, Underwood briefly searched for love again on Bachelor in Paradise that summer. After leaving the beach spinoff single, Underwood helmed the next season of The Bachelor. He left the show in a relationship with Cassie Randolph, though they broke up nearly two years later. Underwood publicly came out as gay in 2021.
Clayton Echard
John Fleenor / ABC / Everett Collection
Echard signed with the Seattle Seahawks in 2016 as a tight end, though his NFL tenure ended in the preseason.
Five years later, Echard appeared on Michelle Young’s season of The Bachelorette. The Missouri native was named the lead for 2022’s season 26. Echard left the show single, breaking up with Gabby Windey and Rachel Recchia after realizing he was still in love with Susie Evans. (Evans left the show early after learning he was intimate with the other finalists. They reconnected after production and dated for six months.)
Mel Owens
Disney/John Fleenor
Owens was a linebacker for the Los Angeles Rams from 1981 to 1989 before pursuing a law career. Decades later, Owens was the second Golden Bachelor. He left the show, which aired in 2025, in a relationship with Peg Munson before they split the next year.
Sam Hartman
Disney/Heidi Gutman
After playing college football for six years at Wake Forest and Notre Dame, Hartman signed with the Washington Commanders as an undrafted free agent in 2024. Two years later, ABC announced Hartman as the season 30 star of The Bachelor.