Sam Hartman is preparing to balance both The Bachelor and his professional football responsibilities simultaneously.
“[Filming] schedule is still being worked out to accommodate the [Washington Commanders] schedule,” Hartman’s agent Brian McLaughlin told ESPN reporter Kalyn Kahler on Friday, November 13. “He did run it by the team and they understood.”
ABC announced earlier on Friday that Hartman, 27, would be the next Bachelor for the hit series’ milestone 30th season. (The quarterback, who signed with the Commanders in 2024 as an undrafted free agent, currently plays on the team’s practice squad.)
“Honestly, at first I was like, ‘No way.’ 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 said on Good Morning America, referring to the franchise host who led the show in 2004 amid his own NFL career. “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].”
He continued, “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.”
While further details of Hartman’s rose-filled journey have yet to be revealed at the time of publication, the show is expected to premiere in March 2027. Bachelor Nation shows are historically filmed months in advance, which would overlap with Hartman’s football calendar. (The Commanders’ NFL schedule for the 2026-2027 season runs through January 2027 ahead of the playoffs, which determine the teams facing off in the Super Bowl championship the next month.)
Hartman’s reality TV debut could also potentially overlap with NFL free agency, which begins March 11, 2027. According to McLaughlin, his client still plans to participate in both.
“I plan on standing outside the mansion and yelling offers to him over the gate,” McLaughlin joked on Friday when asked whether Hartman would have access to his phone during production. “I’ll call the [Bachelor] Mansion landline, worst case scenario.”
Hartman’s casting, which comes on the heels of Taylor Frankie Paul’s scrapped Bachelorette season over resurfaced footage from her 2023 domestic violence arrest, has already won over the hearts of Bachelor Nation.
“I’m just thrilled. I couldn’t believe they went and got him,” Bachelorette alum Tyler Cameron said on Friday’s episode of the “Bachelor Happy Hour” podcast. “I mean, he’s in the middle of an NFL football season. You know what I’m thrilled about? We got a Bachelor who has a job, like, we got a great leading man who’s got a job. A great job, mind you, [and] he is Prince Charming.”
The Bachelor season 30 premieres on ABC Sunday, March 21, 2027, at 8 p.m. ET.
