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 Safety 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 Safety 3-Cone Drills All-Time
| Fastest S 3-Cone Times in NFL Combine History |
| Player |
School |
Time |
Year |
| Troy Apke |
Penn State |
6.56 |
2018 |
| Godwin Igwebuike |
Northwestern |
6.56 |
2018 |
| Daxton Hill |
Michigan |
6.57 |
2022 |
| Michael Griffin |
Texas |
6.60 |
2007 |
| Marvell Tell |
USC |
6.63 |
2019 |
| Tycen Anderson |
Toledo |
6.64 |
2022 |
| Justin Reid |
Stanford |
6.65 |
2018 |
| Desmond King |
Iowa |
6.67 |
2017 |
| Craig Dahl |
North Dakota State |
6.69 |
2007 |
| Quenton Meeks |
Stanford |
6.72 |
2018 |
| John Johnson |
Boston College |
6.72 |
2017 |
| Xavier Woods |
Louisiana Tech |
6.72 |
2017 |
| Josh Gattis |
Wake Forest |
6.72 |
2007 |
Year By Year Top Safety 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 safety that ran a 6.80 or less.
Related –> NFL Combine Averages By Position at 2023 NFL Combine
2023
| Fastest S 3-Cone Times in NFL Combine 2023 |
| Player |
School |
Time |
Year |
| Daniel Scott |
California |
6.75 |
2023 |
| Brandon Joseph |
Notre Dame |
7.08 |
2023 |
Related –> NFL Combine Averages By Position at 2022 NFL Combine
2022
| Fastest S 3-Cone Times in NFL Combine 2022 |
| Player |
School |
Time |
Year |
| Daxton Hill |
Michigan |
6.57 |
2022 |
| Tycen Anderson |
Toledo |
6.64 |
2022 |
| Jalen Pitre |
Baylor |
6.74 |
2022 |
| Leon O’Neal |
Texas A&M |
6.89 |
2022 |
| Kyle Hamilton |
Notre Dame |
6.90 |
2022 |
2020
| Fastest S 3-Cone Times in NFL Combine 2020 |
| Player |
School |
Time |
Year |
| K’Von Wallace |
Clemson |
6.76 |
2020 |
| Alohi Gilman |
Notre Dame |
6.81 |
2020 |
| Jalen Elliott |
Notre Dame |
6.87 |
2020 |
| Josh Metellus |
Michigan |
6.94 |
2020 |
| Chris Miller |
Baylor |
7.09 |
2020 |
2019
| Fastest S 3-Cone Times in NFL Combine 2019 |
| Player |
School |
Time |
Year |
| Marvell Tell |
USC |
6.63 |
2019 |
| Amani Hooker |
Iowa |
6.81 |
2019 |
| Taylor Rapp |
Washington |
6.82 |
2019 |
| Lukas Denis |
Boston College |
6.89 |
2019 |
| Will Harris |
Boston College |
6.91 |
2019 |
2018
| Fastest S 3-Cone Times in NFL Combine 2018 |
| Player |
School |
Time |
Year |
| Troy Apke |
Penn State |
6.56 |
2018 |
| Godwin Igwebuike |
Northwestern |
6.56 |
2018 |
| Justin Reid |
Stanford |
6.65 |
2018 |
| Quenton Meeks |
Stanford |
6.72 |
2018 |
| Jessie Bates |
Wake Forest |
6.78 |
2018 |
2017
| Fastest S 3-Cone Times in NFL Combine 2017 |
| Player |
School |
Time |
Year |
| Desmond King |
Iowa |
6.67 |
2017 |
| John Johnson |
Boston College |
6.72 |
2017 |
| Xavier Woods |
Louisiana Tech |
6.72 |
2017 |
| Budda Baker |
Washington |
6.76 |
2017 |
| Marcus Williams |
Utah |
6.85 |
2017 |
2016
| Fastest S 3-Cone Times in NFL Combine 2016 |
| Player |
School |
Time |
Year |
| Jayron Kearse |
Clemson |
7.06 |
2016 |
| Darian Thompson |
Boise State |
7.26 |
2016 |
2015
| Fastest S 3-Cone Times in NFL Combine 2015 |
| Player |
School |
Time |
Year |
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2015 |
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2015 |
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2015 |
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2015 |
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2015 |
2014
| Fastest S 3-Cone Times in NFL Combine 2014 |
| Player |
School |
Time |
Year |
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2014 |
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2014 |
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2014 |
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2014 |
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2014 |
2013
| Fastest S 3-Cone Times in NFL Combine 2013 |
| Player |
School |
Time |
Year |
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2013 |
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2013 |
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2013 |
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2013 |
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2013 |
Additional Safety 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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