I’ve been a collegiate sports performance coach for 20 years. One thing I always felt was effective was showing guys the heights and weights of players at their position in the NFL.
It helped give many players the extra motivation needed to gain weight when they were able to compare themselves to guys at the next level. Sometimes it was even a stark reality check for, say, defensive backs who thought 175 pounds was ‘about average’ to play in the NFL. (Spoiler Alert: It’s not)
So, this is essentially the same research I would share with players, but now I’m sharing it with you. I took 53-man active rosters for the 2022 season (just before the final week of the season – Jan 2023), almost 1700 players total and broke them down by position.
For this guide, I took an average of the heights and weights of each position group across the league. In addition, just for fun, I listed the tallest, shortest, heaviest and lightest players as well regardless of position. Go ahead and impress someone today with your newfound random football knowledge.
Table of Contents
Average Height of an NFL Football Player
| NFL Average Height By Position | |
| Position | Height (in inches) |
| Overall | 74.15 |
| Quarterback | 74.56 |
| Running Back | 70.93 |
| Wide Receiver | 72.53 |
| Tight End | 76.53 |
| Tackle | 77.71 |
| Guard | 76.39 |
| Center | 75.91 |
| Defensive Tackle | 75.31 |
| Defensive End | 76.06 |
| Linebacker | 74.22 |
| Cornerback | 71.88 |
| Safety | 72.01 |
Average Weight of an NFL Football Player
| NFL Average Weight By Position | |
| Position | Weight (in pounds) |
| Overall | 244.83 |
| Quarterback | 219.80 |
| Running Back | 213.92 |
| Wide Receiver | 199.35 |
| Tight End | 248.65 |
| Tackle | 317.07 |
| Guard | 315.88 |
| Center | 306.19 |
| Defensive Tackle | 309.75 |
| Defensive End | 277.38 |
| Linebacker | 240.70 |
| Cornerback | 193.53 |
| Safety | 203.50 |
Who Are The Tallest Players in the NFL?
There are 19 players listed at 6’8″ including 16 tackles, 2 tight ends and 1 defensive end. Two guys stand alone at 6’9″ as the tallest players in the league.
| Tallest Players in the NFL | |||
| Player | Height | Position | Team |
| Dan Skipper | 6’9″ | Guard | Lions |
| Caleb Jones | 6’9″ | Tackle | Packers |
Who are the Shortest Players in the NFL?
There are 21 players listed at 5’8″ including 11 wide receivers, 6 running backs, 2 corners, 1 safety and 1 kicker. Only 3 players, though, are under 5’8″.
| Shortest Players in the NFL | |||
| Player | Height | Position | Team |
| Boston Scott | 5’6″ | Running Back | Eagles |
| Devin Singletary | 5’7″ | Running Back | Bills |
| Greg Dortch | 5’7″ | Wide Receiver | Cardinals |
Who are the Heaviest Players in the NFL?
The ten heaviest players in the league weigh in at over 345 pounds and, as you might expect, come from the offensive and defensive lines.
| Heaviest Players in the NFL | |||
| Player | Weight | Position | Team |
| Daniel Faalele | 380 | Offensive Tackle | Ravens |
| Marquan McCall | 379 | Defensive Tackle | Panthers |
| Caleb Jones | 370 | Offensive Tackle | Packers |
| Trent Brown | 370 | Offensive Tackle | Patriots |
| Ben Cleveland | 370 | Guard | Ravens |
| Jordan Mailata | 365 | Offensive Tackle | Eagles |
| Quinton Bohanna | 360 | Defensive Tackle | Cowboys |
| Evan Neal | 350 | Offensive Tackle | Giants |
| Mike Onwenu | 350 | Guard | Patriots |
| Vita Vea | 347 | Nose Tackle | Bucs |
Who are the Lightest Players in the NFL?
There are only 27 players (out of nearly 1700) that weigh less than 180 pounds in the NFL (and 2 of those are kickers). The 10 lightest guys in the league all weigh less than 174 pounds.
| Lightest Players in the NFL | |||
| Player | Weight | Position | Team |
| KaVontae Turpin | 153 | Wide Receiver | Cowboys |
| Deven Thompkins | 155 | Wide Receiver | Bucs |
| Tutu Atwell | 165 | Wide Receiver | Rams |
| Jake Elliott | 167 | Kicker | Eagles |
| Marquise Brown | 170 | Wide Receiver | Cardinals |
| Montrell Washington | 170 | Wide Receiver | Broncos |
| DeVonta Smith | 170 | Wide Receiver | Eagles |
| Britain Covey | 173 | Wide Receiver | Eagles |
| Isaiah McKenzie | 173 | Wide Receiver | Bills |
| Jaelon Darden | 173 | Wide Receiver | Browns |
Notes
The running back data does not include players listed as fullbacks. As one would expect, fullbacks are considerably bigger and I felt it would skew the numbers from their intended purpose.
Final Thoughts
So, what did I learn?
Offensive Tackles are the biggest position group in the NFL, averaging almost 6’6″ and 317 pounds per player.
On average, corners are the smallest position group in the NFL, however, all of the lightest players in the league (except for one kicker) are all wide receivers. Really shows the range of sizes you see at the wide receiver position.
Quarterbacks aren’t as tall as many people probably assume. Yes, there are some really tall Quarterbacks, but the position only averages about 6’2 1/2″ and there are 26 guys that are 6’1″ or shorter.
Two of the biggest players in the NFL, Marquan McCall 6’6″ 379 and Quinton Bohanna 6’4″ 360, I believe played on the same defensive line together at Kentucky. What a nightmare that had to have been to deal with.
Other Positions
I’ve done the same height and weight breakdown for individual position groups too, including:
