Sam Schwartzstein

Sam Schwartzstein (born July 7, 1989) is an American former college football player who played for Stanford University. He was also the former director of operations for the 2020 iteration of the XFL, and is the current Prime Video analytics expert on Thursday Night Football.

Schwartzstein played offensive line for the Stanford Cardinal and was a team captain. He was a candidate for the 2013 NFL draft in late April 2013, but went undrafted.

Early life Schwartzstein is Jewish, and his hometown is Southlake, Texas. His father formerly owned a tire dealership.

He attended Carroll High School. As a junior playing left tackle, he helped the Carroll Dragons to 16–0 record and the Texas Class 5A state title, and as a senior he helped the team to an 11–2 record. He was Associated Press second team All-State and first team All-District as a senior in 2007. Scout.com's Texas analyst wrote that he: uses position and leverage to make the plays on the field.... he is quick on the attack, and gets his hands inside the defender; he has enough pop in his hands and arms to not only control the defender but at times to knock him down... he gets the initial contact and the ability to control the situation. Second, he is aggressive in nature and will follow the defender downfield and look for a second block up field... He has good footwork... He is a highly developed tackle prospect... Overall, he is a very good offensive line prospect who plays smart, intelligent football.

He also competed in discus. At the Class 5A Region I Track and Field Championship in 2008, he came in 10th with a discus throw of 148–03.

Playing career

College Schwartzstein chose to attend Stanford, arriving as a guard. In 2010, he played in his junior year at Stanford in six games as a reserve on the offensive line.

In 2011, his senior year, he started all 13 games at center. He helped Andrew Luck lead the Pac-12 in passing efficiency and completion percentage while breaking school records for career (82) and single-season (37) touchdown passes. Stanford also was tied for seventh nationally in fewest sacks allowed per game (0.85; 11 total). He helped running back Stepfan Taylor run for 1,330 yards, the second-highest single-season mark in school history. Coach Shaw said "His ability to decipher things at the line of scrimmage and make sure everybody's on the same page is phenomenal. He sees (defenses) as well as any center I've been around." Before the 2012 season, Walter Football called him a "sleeper center prospect who deserves more attention."

In 2012, the Cardinal played 14 games and allowed only 20 sacks.

NFL draft Some mock drafts had him being selected in the sixth or seventh round of the 2013 NFL draft, but many correctly predicted he would be an undrafted free agent. His time in the 40-yard dash was 5.12 (with a low of 4.96), 7th-best among draft-eligible centers.

Post-playing career

Schwartzstein was a founder of the 2020 iteration of the XFL and helped to write their rulebook from scratch. As the XFL's director of operations, he also oversaw the league's compensation model for players and coaches, as well as on-field technology.

Starting in the 2023 NFL season, Schwartzstein is the analytics expert for Next Gen Stats, one of Thursday Night Footballs weekly alternate streams.