I’ve always loved the NFL Combine. A series of events to evaluate the physical characteristics of the best college football players each year. It’s like field day when you were a kid, but with some of the best athletes in the world.
When I train players for the combine, one of the things we always do is look at previous years’ results to see how we stack up. It is a great tool for goal-setting and motivation.
This guide is simply me sharing this information with you. I went through all the previous NFL Combines (going back to 2006) to find the best Defensive End Broad Jumps of all time.
Note: These are the official NFL Combine times from NFL.com. Some resources online will also include pro-day numbers, but because there are so many other variables with pro-day numbers I’ve stuck strictly to the official reps from Indianapolis.
Another Note: In 2018 NFL.com started classifying Defensive Ends as EDGE. It can be hard to classify the difference between a 4-3 End and a 3-4 Outside Backer and I think this was an attempt to make this position group clearer.
Best Defensive End Broad Jumps of All-Time
| Best DE Broad Jumps in NFL Combine History |
| Player |
School |
Distance |
Year |
| Ben Banogu |
TCU |
11’2″ |
2019 |
| Haason Reddick |
Temple |
11’1″ |
2017 |
| Byron Young |
Tennessee |
11’0″ |
2023 |
| Will McDonald IV |
Iowa State |
11’0″ |
2023 |
| Amare Barno |
Virginia Tech |
10’11” |
2022 |
| Lorenzo Carter |
Georgia |
10’10” |
2018 |
| Brian Burns |
Florida State |
10’9″ |
2019 |
| Kareem Martin |
North Carolina |
10’9″ |
2014 |
| Ade Aruna |
Tulane |
10’8″ |
2018 |
| Connor Barwin |
Cincinnati |
10’8″ |
2009 |
| Myles Garrett |
Texas A&M |
10’8″ |
2017 |
| Michael Johnson |
Georgia Tech |
10’8″ |
2009 |
| Alex McCalister |
Florida |
10’8″ |
2016 |
| Barkevious Mingo |
LSU |
10’8″ |
2013 |
| Devin Taylor |
South Carolina |
10’8″ |
2013 |
| Arnold Ebiketie |
Penn State |
10’8″ |
2022 |
| Nolan Smith |
Georgia |
10’8″ |
2023 |
Year By Year Top Defensive End Broad Numbers
Here is a breakdown of the top 5 Broad Jumps from each year going back to 2006. In addition to the top 5 each year, I’ve also included any defensive end that jumped 10’3″ or further.
Related –> NFL Combine Averages By Position at 2023 NFL Combine
2023
| Best DE Broad Jumps at NFL Combine 2023 |
| Player |
School |
Distance |
Year |
| Byron Young |
Tennessee |
11’0″ |
2023 |
| Will McDonald IV |
Iowa State |
11’0″ |
2023 |
| Nolan Smith |
Georgia |
10’8″ |
2023 |
| Derick Hall |
Auburn |
10’7″ |
2023 |
| Isaiah Land |
Florida A&M |
10’6″ |
2023 |
| BJ Ojulari |
LSU |
10’6″ |
2023 |
| Isaiah Foskey |
Notre Dame |
10’5″ |
2023 |
| Adetomiwa Adebawore |
Northwestern |
10’5″ |
2023 |
| Robert Beal Jr |
Georgia |
10’3″ |
2023 |
Related –> NFL Combine Averages By Position at 2022 NFL Combine
2022
| Best DE Broad Jumps at NFL Combine 2022 |
| Player |
School |
Distance |
Year |
| Amare Barno |
Virginia Tech |
10’11” |
2022 |
| Arnold Ebiketie |
Penn State |
10’8″ |
2022 |
| Drake Jackson |
USC |
10’7″ |
2022 |
| Jermaine Johnson II |
Florida State |
10’5″ |
2022 |
| Boye Mafe |
Minnesota |
10’5″ |
2022 |
| Travon Walker |
Georgia |
10’3″ |
2022 |
| Sam Williams |
Ole Miss |
10’3″ |
2022 |
| Joshua Paschal |
Kentucky |
10’3″ |
2022 |
2020
| Best DE Broad Jumps at NFL Combine 2020 |
| Player |
School |
Distance |
Year |
| Jabari Zuniga |
Florida |
10’7″ |
2020 |
| Carter Coughlin |
Minnesota |
10’6″ |
2020 |
| Casey Toohill |
Stanford |
10’6″ |
2020 |
| Jonathan Garvin |
Miami |
10’5″ |
2020 |
| Alex Highsmith |
Charlotte |
10’5″ |
2020 |
| Terrell Lewis |
Alabama |
10’4″ |
2020 |
| James Smith-Williams |
NC State |
10’3″ |
2020 |
| D.J. Wonnum |
South Carolina |
10’3″ |
2020 |
2019
| Best DE Broad Jumps at NFL Combine 2019 |
| Player |
School |
Distance |
Year |
| Ben Banogu |
TCU |
11’2″ |
2019 |
| Brian Burns |
Florida State |
10’9″ |
2019 |
| Jordan Brailford |
Oklahoma State |
10’6″ |
2019 |
| Montez Sweat |
Mississippi State |
10’5″ |
2019 |
| Maxx Crosby |
Eastern Michigan |
10’2″ |
2019 |
| Jamal Davis |
Akron |
10’2″ |
2019 |
2018
| Best DE Broad Jumps at NFL Combine 2018 |
| Player |
School |
Distance |
Year |
| Lorenzo Carter |
Georgia |
10’10” |
2018 |
| Ade Aruna |
Tulane |
10’8″ |
2018 |
| Marcus Davenport |
Texas San Antonio |
10’4″ |
2018 |
| Josh Sweat |
Florida State |
10’4″ |
2018 |
| Marquis Haynes |
Ole Miss |
10’3″ |
2018 |
2017
| Best DE Broad Jumps at NFL Combine 2017 |
| Player |
School |
Distance |
Year |
| Haason Reddick |
Temple |
11’1″ |
2017 |
| Myles Garrett |
Texas A&M |
10’8″ |
2017 |
| Tanoh Kpassagnon |
Villanova |
10’8″ |
2017 |
| Solomon Thomas |
Stanford |
10’6″ |
2017 |
| Jordan Willis |
Kansas State |
10’5″ |
2017 |
| Deatrich Wise |
Arkansas |
10’5″ |
2017 |
2016
| Best DE Broad Jumps at NFL Combine 2016 |
| Player |
School |
Distance |
Year |
| Alex McCalister |
Florida |
10’8″ |
2016 |
| Emmanuel Ogbah |
Oklahoma State |
10’1″ |
2016 |
| Noah Spence |
Eastern Kentucky |
10’1″ |
2016 |
| Joey Bosa |
Ohio State |
10’0″ |
2016 |
| Shaq Lawson |
Clemson |
10’0″ |
2016 |
| Romeo Okwara |
Notre Dame |
10’0″ |
2016 |
2015
| Best DE Broad Jumps at NFL Combine 2015 |
| Player |
School |
Distance |
Year |
| Owa Odighizuwa |
UCLA |
10’7″ |
2015 |
| Trey Flowers |
Arkansas |
10’1″ |
2015 |
| Obum Gwacham |
Oregon State |
10’1″ |
2015 |
| Preston Smith |
Mississippi State |
10’1″ |
2015 |
| Ryan Russell |
Purdue |
9’11” |
2015 |
2014
| Best DE Broad Jumps at NFL Combine 2014 |
| Player |
School |
Distance |
Year |
| Kareem Martin |
North Carolina |
10’9″ |
2014 |
| Jadeveon Clowney |
South Carolina |
10’4″ |
2014 |
| Howard Jones |
Shepherd |
10’4″ |
2014 |
| Jackson Jeffcoat |
Texas |
10’3″ |
2014 |
| Zach Moore |
Concordia College St Paul |
10’3″ |
2014 |
| Larry Webster |
Bloomsburg |
10’3″ |
2014 |
2013
| Best DE Broad Jumps at NFL Combine 2013 |
| Player |
School |
Distance |
Year |
| Barkevious Mingo |
LSU |
10’8″ |
2013 |
| Devin Taylor |
South Carolina |
10’8″ |
2013 |
| Trevardo Williams |
Connecticut |
10’4″ |
2013 |
| Dion Jordan |
Oregon |
10’2″ |
2013 |
| Damontre Moore |
Texas A&M |
10’2″ |
2013 |
| Ty Powell |
Harding University |
10’2″ |
2013 |
2012
| Best DE Broad Jumps at NFL Combine 2012 |
| Player |
School |
Distance |
Year |
| Scott Solomon |
Rice |
10’4″ |
2012 |
| Nick Perry |
USC |
10’4″ |
2012 |
| Olivier Vernon |
Miami |
10’2″ |
2012 |
| Chandler Jones |
Syracuse |
10’0″ |
2012 |
| Andre Branch |
Clemson |
10’0″ |
2012 |
2011
| Best DE Broad Jumps at NFL Combine 2011 |
| Player |
School |
Distance |
Year |
| Patrick Kerrigan |
Purdue |
10’2″ |
2011 |
| Justin Watt |
Wisconsin |
10’0″ |
2011 |
| D’Aundre Reed |
Arizona |
9’11” |
2011 |
| Cheta Ozougwu |
Rice |
9’11” |
2011 |
| Aldon Smith |
Missouri |
9’10” |
2011 |
2010
| Best DE Broad Jumps at NFL Combine 2010 |
| Player |
School |
Distance |
Year |
| Austen Lane |
Murray State |
10’5″ |
2010 |
| Daniel Te’o-Nesheim |
Washington |
10’1″ |
2010 |
| Willie Young |
NC State |
9’10” |
2010 |
| Greg Hardy |
Ole Miss |
9’9″ |
2010 |
| CJ Wilson |
East Carolina |
9’8″ |
2010 |
| Greg Middleton |
Indiana |
9’8″ |
2010 |
| Tyson Alualu |
California |
9’8″ |
2010 |
2009
| Best DE Broad Jumps at NFL Combine 2009 |
| Player |
School |
Distance |
Year |
| Michael Johnson |
Georgia Tech |
10’8″ |
2009 |
| Aaron Maybin |
Penn State |
10’4″ |
2009 |
| Lawrence Sidbury |
Richmond |
10’0″ |
2009 |
| Jarron Gilbert |
San Jose State |
9’11” |
2009 |
| Pannel Egboh |
Stanford |
9’8″ |
2009 |
2008
| Best DE Broad Jumps at NFL Combine 2008 |
| Player |
School |
Distance |
Year |
| Vernon Gholston |
Ohio State |
10’5″ |
2008 |
| Chris Long |
Virginia |
10’4″ |
2008 |
| Jason Jones |
Eastern Michigan |
10’3″ |
2008 |
| Louis Holmes |
Arizona |
10’1″ |
2008 |
| Jeremy Thompson |
Wake Forest |
9’9″ |
2008 |
| Chris Harrington |
Texas A&M |
9’9″ |
2008 |
2007
| Best DE Broad Jumps at NFL Combine 2007 |
| Player |
School |
Distance |
Year |
| Brian Robinson |
Texas |
10’1″ |
2007 |
| Jarvis Moss |
Florida |
10’0″ |
2007 |
| Gaines Adams |
Clemson |
9’11” |
2007 |
| Jay Moore |
Nebraska |
9’10” |
2007 |
| Charles Johnson |
Georgia |
9’10” |
2007 |
2006
| Best DE Broad Jumps at NFL Combine 2006 |
| Player |
School |
Distance |
Year |
| Kamerion Wimbley |
Florida State |
11’9″ |
2006 |
| Mark Anderson |
Alabama |
11’7″ |
2006 |
| Chris Gocong |
Cal Poly |
11’3″ |
2006 |
| Mathias Kiwanuka |
Boston College |
11’0″ |
2006 |
| Copeland Bryan |
Arizona |
9’9″ |
2006 |
Notes
In my opinion, a great broad jump might be the most impressive thing to see in person – even more than a lightning-fast 40 or an outstanding vertical jump.
If you don’t believe me I want you to grab a measuring tape and some regular tape.
Find an open area on the floor and put down a strip of tape. Then, measure out ten feet and put down another strip of tape. Now, stand behind the first piece of tape and just look at how far the other piece of tape actually is! Almost every guy listed above jumped past that tape. And, by the way, don’t forget that the average NFL defensive end weighs almost 280 pounds.
Final Thoughts
Keep in mind that not everyone that gets invited to the NFL Combine actually jumps (although broad jumps along with running the 40 and vertical jumps are still heavily participated in by most positions). So, some players that potentially could put up a big jump don’t have an official number on the record.
Finally, don’t forget that there are many players each year that would have put up big numbers that don’t receive an NFL Combine invite. I’ve been at many pro days where some of the numbers our guys put up would have been top 5 or even top 3 at the combine that year.
Featured Image Photo Credit: Alena Veasey / Shutterstock.com
References
NFL.com
Share This
