Sam Roush

Draft Projection

Measurements

Athletic Testing

Strengths

• He can actually block, which you don't see enough from college tight ends anymore. Lines up inline without hesitation, works to the second level on outside zone, and holds his ground in pass pro when edge guys try to work inside.
• His routes have more polish than you'd expect given Stanford's run-first approach. Changes speeds nicely, uses his long arms to create space, and understands how to manipulate DBs in man coverage without getting handsy and drawing flags.
• The intermediate game is where he eats. Anything between the numbers from 12-18 yards out, he's finding the soft spot in zone and giving his quarterback a big target to work with on third down.
• Goes up and gets it when the ball's in the air. Doesn't wait around for passes to come to him, attacks the catch point and wins contested situations against physical corners who try to body him up.
• Processes coverage fast and adjusts on the fly. You can see him reading safeties pre-snap, and he's smart enough to sit down in zones or work back to his quarterback when plays break down.
• Busts his ass on every snap whether he's getting the ball or not. Runs off safeties to clear space for others, finishes blocks downfield, just plays the game the right way without needing coaching to compete.
• Has enough juice down the seam to make safeties think twice about sitting on his underneath stuff. Not a burner, but when he gets a clean release he can threaten vertically and open up the middle of the field.
• Better after the catch than his 40 time suggests. Runs through arm tackles, keeps his legs churning, and shows decent balance when defenders try to trip him up in traffic.

Areas to Improve

• Drops too many balls he should catch. Sometimes the easy ones hit him in the chest and bounce off, other times he gets alligator arms when DBs get physical at the catch point. Needs way more consistency here.
• Gets sloppy with his blocking technique when he widens his base too much on contact. Lunges at defenders, drops his head, and winds up on the ground losing blocks he should finish against edge guys with decent power moves.
• Route breaks aren't sudden enough to create instant separation. Relies more on length and positioning than crisp footwork to get open, which becomes a problem when corners can jam him and eliminate his reach advantage.
• The athletic limitations show up against top competition. When he faces guys who match his size and blow past his speed, he's searching for answers because he can't just out-athlete defenders consistently.
• Ball tracking on deep shots needs serious work. Misjudges where the ball's coming down too often, either stops his route early or runs past the spot, which limits how much you can trust him as a vertical threat.