Dean's Age Shouldn't Matter On 'The Bachelorette'

After the wide range of ages between the contestants last season on The Bachelor, it shouldn't even be an issue this time around. But now that Rachel is really starting to like him, how old is Dean on The Bachelorette? Even though he's 26 and Rachel is 32, the age difference really doesn't matter because their connection is already easy to see.

In fact, when Rachel and Dean had their first one-on-one date Monday night, they seemed like two people who had already been exclusively dating for weeks. If they already have a connection and feel this comfortable with each other, then Dean's age should have no bearing on his relationship with Rachel on The Bachelorette.

Naturally, Rachel herself had reservations about Dean because of his young age, regarding whether or not he was ready to start a family and settle down, but during the evening portion of their date, he managed to squash any worries she might have had. When Dean opened up about his mother's death back when he was 15, and called her "the most amazing woman of all time," it struck a chord with Rachel. Well, to be honest, it no doubt brought floods of tears from viewers everywhere.

But Dean's story on The Bachelorette was enough to reassure Rachel that he's been through a lot. In fact, it forced him to grow up faster in many ways and makes him all the more eager to start a family of his own. Rachel even said after their emotional talk that he's the kind of man she would want to be with. "After today," she said, "I totally see a future with Dean."

One of the biggest (and really, only) issues with Dean is his age, but being 26 doesn't necessarily mean he's not ready for any kind of commitment with Rachel. And I think it's safe to say that the guys' concerns about Dean's age came from a place of being jealous and worried. Which, judging by the outcome of his one-on-one date with Rachel, they should be.

After all of the drama that's been going down already this season, Rachel's one-on-one date with Dean on The Bachelorette Monday night was the most promising solo date so far. Yes, even better than her doggy date with Copper and Peter, because she and Dean already seemed so at ease with each other and that was hard to ignore. And opening up to Rachel in such a big way could not have been easy.

If Dean and Rachel had a connection before their one-on-one date, it only grew after he was able to open up to her and she saw that. And, big surprise, Dean's age on The Bachelorette had absolutely nothing to do with it.