Fastest Quarterback 40 Times in NFL Combine History
I’ve always loved the NFL Combine. A series of events to evaluate the physical characteristics of the best college football players each year. While it’s debatable whether this whole event is actually valuable (why we’re still doing 225 rep tests, especially with Wide Receivers, I’ll never know), my fascination with it has never waned.
When I trained players for the combine, one of the things we would always do is look at previous years’ results to see how we stacked up. It was a great tool for goal-setting and motivation.
I basically did the same thing for this guide. I went through all the previous NFL Combines to find the top Quarterback 40 times of all time.
Note: These are the official NFL Combine times from NFL.com. Some resources online will also include pro day times, but because there are so many other variables (surface, weather, etc) I’ve stuck strictly to the official times from Indianapolis.
Best Quarterback NFL Combine 40 Times All-Time
| Fastest Quarterback Times in NFL Combine History | |||
| Player | School | Time | Year |
| Reggie McNeal | Texas A&M | 4.35 | 2006 |
| Robert Griffin III | Baylor | 4.41 | 2012 |
| Anthony Richardson | Florida | 4.43 | 2023 |
| Marcus Vick | Virginia Tech | 4.47 | 2006 |
| Marcus Mariota | Oregon | 4.52 | 2015 |
| Tyrod Taylor | Virginia Tech | 4.52 | 2011 |
| Desmond Ridder | Cincinnati | 4.52 | 2022 |
| Max Duggan | TCU | 4.52 | 2023 |
| Malik Cunningham | Louisville | 4.53 | 2023 |
| Jarrett Brown | West Virginia | 4.54 | 2010 |
| Trevor Knight | Texas A&M | 4.54 | 2017 |
| Nick Marshall | Auburn | 4.54 | 2015 |
| Brad Smith | Missouri | 4.54 | 2006 |
Year By Year Top Quarterback 40 Times
Here is a breakdown of the top 5 40 times from each year going back to 2012. In addition to the top 5 each year, I’ve also included any Quarterback that has run a 4.70 or faster.
Related –> NFL Combine Averages By Position at 2023 NFL Combine
2023
| Fastest NFL Combine Quarterback Times 2023 | |||
| Player | School | Time | Year |
| Anthony Richardson | Florida | 4.43 | 2023 |
| Max Duggan | TCU | 4.52 | 2023 |
| Malik Cunningham | Louisville | 4.53 | 2023 |
| Dorian Thompson-Robinson | UCLA | 4.56 | 2023 |
| Clayton Tune | Houston | 4.64 | 2023 |
| Stetson Bennett | Georgia | 4.67 | 2023 |
Related –> NFL Combine Averages By Position at 2022 NFL Combine
2022
| Fastest NFL Combine Quarterback Times 2022 | |||
| Player | School | Time | Year |
| Desmond Ridder | Cincinnati | 4.52 | 2022 |
| E.J. Perry | Brown | 4.65 | 2022 |
| Kenny Pickett | Pittsburgh | 4.73 | 2022 |
| Dustin Crum | Kent State | 4.75 | 2022 |
| Brock Purdy | Iowa State | 4.84 | 2022 |
2020
| Fastest NFL Combine Quarterback Times 2020 | |||
| Player | School | Time | Year |
| Cole McDonald | Hawaii | 4.58 | 2020 |
| Jalen Hurts | Oklahoma | 4.59 | 2020 |
| Justin Herbert | Oregon | 4.68 | 2020 |
| Steven Montez | Colorado | 4.68 | 2020 |
| Kelly Bryant | Missouri | 4.69 | 2020 |
2019
| Fastest NFL Combine Quarterback Times 2019 | |||
| Player | School | Time | Year |
| Trace McSorley | Penn State | 4.57 | 2019 |
| Tyree Jackson | Buffalo | 4.59 | 2019 |
| Easton Stick | North Dakota State | 4.62 | 2019 |
| Nick Fitzgerald | Mississippi State | 4.64 | 2019 |
| Drew Lock | Missouri | 4.69 | 2019 |
2018
| Fastest NFL Combine Quarterback Times 2018 | |||
| Player | School | Time | Year |
| J.T. Barrett | Ohio State | 4.70 | 2018 |
| Josh Allen | Wyoming | 4.75 | 2018 |
| Danny Etling | LSU | 4.76 | 2018 |
| Logan Woodside | Toledo | 4.79 | 2018 |
| Austin Allen | Arkansas | 4.81 | 2018 |
| Kyle Lauletta | Richmond | 4.81 | 2018 |
2017
| Fastest NFL Combine Quarterback Times 2017 | |||
| Player | School | Time | Year |
| Trevor Knight | Texas A&M | 4.54 | 2017 |
| Joshua Dobbs | Tennessee | 4.64 | 2017 |
| Deshaun Watson | Clemson | 4.66 | 2017 |
| Mitchell Trubisky | North Carolina | 4.67 | 2017 |
| Davis Webb | California | 4.79 | 2017 |
2016
| Fastest NFL Combine Quarterback Times 2016 | |||
| Player | School | Time | Year |
| Jeff Driskel | Louisiana Tech | 4.56 | 2016 |
| Trevone Boykin | TCU | 4.77 | 2016 |
| Carson Wentz | North Dakota State | 4.77 | 2016 |
| Christian Hackenberg | Penn State | 4.78 | 2016 |
| Kevin Hogan | Stanford | 4.78 | 2016 |
2015
| Fastest NFL Combine Quarterback Times 2015 | |||
| Player | School | Time | Year |
| Marcus Mariota | Oregon | 4.52 | 2015 |
| Nick Marshall | Auburn | 4.54 | 2015 |
| Blake Sims | Alabama | 4.57 | 2015 |
| Cody Fajardo | Nevada | 4.63 | 2015 |
| Brett Hundley | UCLA | 4.63 | 2015 |
2014
| Fastest NFL Combine Quarterback Times 2014 | |||
| Player | School | Time | Year |
| Logan Thomas | Virginia Tech | 4.61 | 2014 |
| Stephen Morris | Miami | 4.63 | 2014 |
| Connor Shaw | South Carolina | 4.66 | 2014 |
| Johnny Manziel | Texas A&M | 4.68 | 2014 |
| Derek Carr | Fresno State | 4.69 | 2014 |
2013
| Fastest NFL Combine Quarterback Times 2013 | |||
| Player | School | Time | Year |
| Geno Smith | West Virginia | 4.59 | 2013 |
| EJ Manuel | Florida State | 4.65 | 2013 |
| Matt Scott | Arizona | 4.69 | 2013 |
| MarQueis Gray | Minnesota | 4.73 | 2013 |
| Colby Cameron | Louisiana Tech | 4.78 | 2013 |
2012
| Fastest NFL Combine Quarterback Times 2012 | |||
| Player | School | Time | Year |
| Robert Griffin III | Baylor | 4.41 | 2012 |
| Russell Wilson | Wisconsin | 4.55 | 2012 |
| Jordan Jefferson | LSU | 4.65 | 2012 |
| Andrew Luck | Stanford | 4.67 | 2012 |
| Aaron Corp | Richmond | 4.72 | 2012 |
| Jacory Harris | Miami | 4.72 | 2012 |
FAQ
Does Running a Fast 40 at the Combine Guarantee Success for a Quarterback?
Running a fast 40 at the NFL Combine can lead to much hype and recognition, but does it directly translate to NFL success?
Guarantee? No. Not at all.
Although it was interesting to dig through the top 10 all-time 40s for quarterbacks to see how their NFL careers panned out. I’ve done this for multiple positions now and the Quarterback position is easily the most hit-and-miss.
On the positive side, two of the Quarterbacks in the top 10 (Griffin III & Mariota) were drafted 2nd overall. However, only about half of the top 10 was drafted at all (Brad Smith was drafted in the 4th round but spent most of his 9 years in the NFL as a wide receiver).
The top 10 has only produced two total pro bowls (Griffin III – 1 & Taylor – 1) and Robert Griffin III has the only other award I could find when he won Offensive Rookie of the Year.
Final Thoughts
Keep in mind that not everyone that gets invited to NFL Combine actually runs a 40 at the Combine (I believe this is even more prevalent with quarterbacks). So, some players that potentially could have run extremely fast times don’t have an official time on the record.
On top of that, there are many players each year that would have put up fast times and had success at the NFL level that doesn’t receive an NFL Combine invite.
