Commanders QB Sam Hartman to star as lead of ABC's 'The Bachelor' 30th season

ABC announced that Sam Hartman, a 27-year-old quarterback on the Washington Commanders' practice squad, will star as the lead of the 30th season of 'The Bachelor,' which premieres March 21. The former Notre Dame and Wake Forest quarterback, drafted by the NFL in 2024, will be asked to date 20 to 30 women at once. Hartman has not previously been a contestant. The show's earlier football lead, Jesse Palmer, was a backup with the New York Giants in 2004 and was cut before the 2005 season; Palmer now hosts the show.

The Washington Post, the only left-leaning outlet here, leads with a headline calling Hartman 'the next Bachelor star,' and its excerpt centers on the dating format of 20 to 30 women at once. Alternative outlets ESPN and Awful Announcing report the same casting and March premiere, and Awful Announcing adds the Palmer precedent and a playful tone. Right-leaning Page Six leads with Hartman's live remark on Good Morning America that he may have spoiled his brother Joe's engagement, plus Joe's Instagram joke, while the Washington Times reports the casting under a plain headline. All sides agree on the casting and the season; they differ in focus, with the left on the format, alternative outlets on the show's history, and the right on the family moment.