{"id":277461,"date":"2026-04-21T10:22:51","date_gmt":"2026-04-21T14:22:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/?p=277461"},"modified":"2026-04-21T10:15:14","modified_gmt":"2026-04-21T14:15:14","slug":"2026-nfl-draft-scouting-report-beau-stephens","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2026\/04\/21\/2026-nfl-draft-scouting-report-beau-stephens\/","title":{"rendered":"2026 NFL Draft Scouting Report: Beau Stephens"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The offensive line class in the <a  href=\"https:\/\/grokipedia.com\/page\/2026_NFL_draft\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">2026 NFL Draft<\/a> is stacked with experienced, high-floor prospects. Iowa\u2019s Beau Stephens stands out as a highly competitive option that brings his all to every snap. Although his career arc may be determined by the scheme he\u2019s drafted into, Stephens is a mauler who will outwork his opposition on most downs.<\/p>\n<h3>Measurables<\/h3>\n<p><strong>Height:<\/strong> 6\u20195\u2033<br \/>\n<strong>Weight:<\/strong> 315 pounds<br \/>\n<strong>Arms:<\/strong> 31.125\u2033<br \/>\n<strong>Hands:<\/strong> 9.25\u2033<br \/>\n<strong>40-yard:<\/strong> 5.35<br \/>\n<strong>Vertical:<\/strong> 28\u2033<br \/>\n<strong>Broad jump:<\/strong> 8\u20196\u2033<br \/>\n<strong>School:<\/strong> Iowa<br \/>\n<strong>Position:<\/strong> Offensive Guard<\/p>\n<h2>Beau Stephens NFL Draft Overview<\/h2>\n<p>A four-star recruit out of Blue Springs High School in Missouri, Stephens redshirted at <a  href=\"https:\/\/hawkeyesports.com\/sports\/football\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Iowa<\/a> in 2021, then started 10 games at right guard in 2022. A leg injury limited him to just five appearances in 2023. He bounced back in 2024 as Iowa\u2019s Comeback Player of the Year, starting 11 games at left guard and helping the offense average over 197 rushing yards per game. In 2025, Stephens started all 13 games at left guard, allowed zero sacks and just four pressures all season. Across his career, Stephens has 35 starts with 25 at left guard and 10 at right guard. He also displayed the durability to overcome multiple injury setbacks. A high-motor competitor with a chip on his shoulder, Stephens has developed into one of college football\u2019s most consistent interior blockers.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Strengths<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Efficient zone run blocker who steps quickly off the snap<\/li>\n<li>Gets into drive blocks with suddenness<\/li>\n<li>Delivers punch with a physical, competitive demeanor<\/li>\n<li>Good anchor against bull rushes, setting his frame properly in pass-protection<\/li>\n<li>Can move through the initial setup to string together multiple blocks<\/li>\n<li>Adjusts quickly to speed rush from the interior to reset and wall off the defender<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Weaknesses<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Bigger rushers can post him and leverage past<\/li>\n<li>Average athleticism that leads to delays in the stretch run game<\/li>\n<li>Needs to avoid lunging when the rush hesitates in approach<\/li>\n<li>High-level power rushers will likely always be favored against him<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Projection:<\/strong> Round 5<br \/>\n<strong>Best Fits: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/category\/nfl-teams\/49ers\/\" target=\"_self\">San Francisco 49ers<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/category\/nfl-teams\/packers\/\" target=\"_self\">Green Bay Packers<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/category\/nfl-teams\/ravens\/\" target=\"_self\">Baltimore Ravens<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/category\/nfl-teams\/chiefs\/\" target=\"_self\">Kansas City Chiefs<\/a><\/p>\n<h2><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2026\/04\/USATSI_28106418.webp\" alt=\"\" width=\"3600\" height=\"2400\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-277519\" srcset=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2026\/04\/USATSI_28106418.webp 3600w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2026\/04\/USATSI_28106418-768x512.webp 768w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2026\/04\/USATSI_28106418-600x400.webp 600w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2026\/04\/USATSI_28106418-1200x800.webp 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 3600px) 100vw, 3600px\" \/><\/h2>\n<h2>Bottom Line on Beau Stephens<\/h2>\n<p>Beau Stephens is a proven, scheme-specific guard who came into his own in 2025. With zero sacks allowed and relentless effort in the ground game, the traits for a smooth pro transition are readily available. Stephens will enter the league with valuable experience and toughness. These are qualities his future coaching staff will take note of. With a sound understanding of assignments and an angry demeanor, his ceiling rises slightly. However, it remains somewhat capped by physical limitations. Stephens may never be more than a rotational guard or depth piece, but that role still carries significant value in today\u2019s <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.nfl.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">NFL<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>For Beau, it\u2019s all going to come down to how teams view his value heading into Day 3. There\u2019s a possibility of him going in Round 4, but his window may stay open all the way to the bottom of the sixth. Teams are often hesitant to spend early draft capital on the interior offensive line, especially in a class this deep with high-upside tackle options that could push some IOL prospects down the board. Stephens will likely see his value suppressed because of those names at tackle. Pick No. 140 overall is probably his high-water mark, with No. 180 being the low end.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The offensive line class in the 2026 NFL Draft is stacked with experienced, high-floor prospects. Iowa\u2019s Beau Stephens stands out.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5786,"featured_media":277521,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1647,33760],"tags":[34587,34324,34590],"class_list":["post-277461","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nfl-draft","category-profiles","tag-2026-nfl-d","tag-2026-nfl-draft-combine","tag-beau-stephens"],"modified_by":"Sue Levine","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/277461","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5786"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=277461"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/277461\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":277514,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/277461\/revisions\/277514"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/277521"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=277461"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=277461"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=277461"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}