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 basically an Olympic decathlon for potential NFL Rookies.
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 to find the top Defensive Tackle 3-Cone Drill (also called L-Drill) performances 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 (surface, traction, weather, etc) I’ve stuck strictly to the official reps from Indianapolis.
Fastest Defensive Tackle 3-Cone Drills All-Time
| Fastest DT 3-Cone Times in NFL Combine History |
| Player |
School |
Time |
Year |
| Fletcher Cox |
Mississippi State |
7.07 |
2012 |
| Vaughn Meatoga |
Hawaii |
7.10 |
2012 |
| Aaron Donald |
Pittsburgh |
7.11 |
2014 |
| Taven Bryan |
Florida |
7.12 |
2018 |
| Nick Fairley |
Auburn |
7.14 |
2011 |
| Josh Boyd |
Mississippi State |
7.16 |
2013 |
| Mike Martin |
Michigan |
7.19 |
2012 |
| Jared Smith |
New Hampshire |
7.20 |
2013 |
| Ndamukong Suh |
Nebraska |
7.21 |
2010 |
| Jared Odrick |
Penn State |
7.22 |
2010 |
Year By Year Top Defensive Tackle 3-Cone Times
Here is a breakdown of the top 5 3-Cone times from each year going back to 2012. In addition to the top 5 each year, I’ve also included any defensive tackle that ran a 7.40 or less.
Related –> NFL Combine Averages By Position at 2023 NFL Combine
2023
| Fastest DT 3-Cone Times in NFL Combine 2023 |
| Player |
School |
Time |
Year |
| Jalen Redmond |
Oklahoma |
7.30 |
2023 |
| Keeanu Benton |
Wisconsin |
7.34 |
2023 |
| Dante Stills |
West Virginia |
7.38 |
2023 |
| Zacch Pickens |
South Carolina |
7.45 |
2023 |
| Gervon Dexter Sr |
Florida |
7.50 |
2023 |
Related –> NFL Combine Averages By Position at 2022 NFL Combine
2022
| Fastest DT 3-Cone Times in NFL Combine 2022 |
| Player |
School |
Time |
Year |
| Thomas Booker |
Stanford |
7.33 |
2022 |
| Travis Jones |
Connecticut |
7.33 |
2022 |
| DJ Davidson |
Arizona State |
7.85 |
2022 |
| Matthew Butler |
Tennessee |
7.89 |
2022 |
| Neil Farrell |
LSU |
8.41 |
2022 |
2020
| Fastest DT 3-Cone Times in NFL Combine 2020 |
| Player |
School |
Time |
Year |
| Justin Madubuike |
Texas A&M |
7.37 |
2020 |
| Rob Windsor |
Penn State |
7.47 |
2020 |
| DaVon Hamilton |
Ohio State |
7.72 |
2020 |
| Raequan Williams |
Michigan State |
7.72 |
2020 |
| Darrion Daniels |
Nebraska |
7.75 |
2020 |
2019
| Fastest DT 3-Cone Times in NFL Combine 2019 |
| Player |
School |
Time |
Year |
| Jerry Tillery |
Notre Dame |
7.45 |
2019 |
| Daniel Wise |
Kansas |
7.53 |
2019 |
| Khalen Saunders |
Western Illinois |
7.57 |
2019 |
| Kevin Givens |
Penn State |
7.63 |
2019 |
| Renell Wren |
Arizona State |
7.65 |
2019 |
2018
| Fastest DT 3-Cone Times in NFL Combine 2018 |
| Player |
School |
Time |
Year |
| Taven Bryan |
Florida |
7.12 |
2018 |
| BJ Hill |
NC State |
7.28 |
2018 |
| Harrison Phillips |
Stanford |
7.28 |
2018 |
| Zay Henderson |
Texas A&M |
7.33 |
2018 |
| Foley Fatukasi |
Connecticut |
7.44 |
2018 |
2017
| Fastest DT 3-Cone Times in NFL Combine 2017 |
| Player |
School |
Time |
Year |
| Tanzel Smart |
Tulane |
7.53 |
2017 |
| Ryan Glasgow |
Michigan |
7.55 |
2017 |
| Larry Ogunjobi |
Charlotte |
7.55 |
2017 |
| Vincent Taylor |
Oklahoma State |
7.58 |
2017 |
| Montravius Adams |
Auburn |
7.62 |
2017 |
2016
| Fastest DT 3-Cone Times in NFL Combine 2016 |
| Player |
School |
Time |
Year |
| Jonathan Bullard |
Florida |
7.31 |
2016 |
| Connor Wujciak |
Boston College |
7.32 |
2016 |
| Sheldon Day |
Notre Dame |
7.44 |
2016 |
| Joel Heath |
Michigan State |
7.44 |
2016 |
| Chris Jones |
Mississippi State |
7.44 |
2016 |
| Sheldon Rankins |
Louisville |
7.44 |
2016 |
2015
| Fastest DT 3-Cone Times in NFL Combine 2015 |
| Player |
School |
Time |
Year |
| Xavier Cooper |
Washington State |
7.23 |
2015 |
| Derrick Lott |
UT Chattanooga |
7.30 |
2015 |
| Louis Trinca-Pasat |
Iowa |
7.40 |
2015 |
| Mario Edwards |
Florida State |
7.44 |
2015 |
| Angelo Blackson |
Auburn |
7.50 |
2015 |
2014
| Fastest DT 3-Cone Times in NFL Combine 2014 |
| Player |
School |
Time |
Year |
| Aaron Donald |
Pittsburgh |
7.11 |
2014 |
| Kerry Hyder |
Texas Tech |
7.23 |
2014 |
| Caraun Reid |
Princeton |
7.59 |
2014 |
| Tenny Palepoi |
Utah |
7.67 |
2014 |
| DaQuan Jones |
Penn State |
7.73 |
2014 |
2013
| Fastest DT 3-Cone Times in NFL Combine 2013 |
| Player |
School |
Time |
Year |
| Josh Boyd |
Mississippi State |
7.16 |
2013 |
| Jared Smith |
New Hampshire |
7.20 |
2013 |
| Sharrif Floyd |
Florida |
7.40 |
2013 |
| Jordan Hill |
Penn State |
7.49 |
2013 |
| Bennie Logan |
LSU |
7.53 |
2013 |
2012
| Fastest DT 3-Cone Times in NFL Combine 2012 |
| Player |
School |
Time |
Year |
| Fletcher Cox |
Mississippi State |
7.07 |
2012 |
| Vaughn Meatoga |
Hawaii |
7.10 |
2012 |
| Mike Martin |
Michigan |
7.19 |
2012 |
| Derek Wolfe |
Cincinnati |
7.26 |
2012 |
| Tydreke Powell |
North Carolina |
7.31 |
2012 |
| Brett Roy |
Nevada |
7.31 |
2012 |
| Jaye Howard |
Florida |
7.32 |
2012 |
| JR Sweezy |
NC State |
7.40 |
2012 |
Additional Defensive Tackle Results
In addition to the 3-Cone, I’ve compiled similar results for the following Combine events:
Final Thoughts
Keep in mind that not everyone that gets invited to the NFL Combine actually participates in the 3-Cone Drill. So, some players that potentially could put up a great time don’t have an official number on the record.
On top of 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 a pro day where we had guys who put up numbers that would have put them right at the top of the rankings.
References
NFL.com
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