Wonderlic Test
The Wonderlic Personnel Test is an intelligence test (like an IQ test) comprising a 12 minute, 50 question exam, which is meant to judge aptitude for adapting to certain situations. The test was developed in 1936 by E.F. Wonderlic as a measure of cognitive ability. It is similar to other standardized tests, in that it uses a multiple choice format for its questions with increasing difficulty. It's designed so that most of the participants will not have time to complete it.
NFL Testing
The Wonderlic intelligence test has been given to prospective players at the National Football League Combine since the 1970s. The NFL average is said to be 19, with the average for a quarterback 24. Some sources list Pat McInally (P/WR from Harvard) as the only football player to record a perfect score of 50 - but he is not on other lists. In 2006, Texas quarterback Vince Young became the talk of the National Football Scouting combine when he scored a six on the test - a score of six is low for any player but especially so for a quarterback.
Average Scores
These average scores apparently come from a NFL source:
Offensive tackles: 26
Centers: 25
Quarterbacks: 24
Guards: 23
Tight Ends: 22
Safeties: 19
Middle linebackers: 19
Cornerbacks: 18
Wide receivers: 17
Fullbacks: 17
Halfbacks: 16
Some Selected Scores
Here are just a selection of the reported scores that have been achieved by players during the NFL Combine. There is some dispute about the actual scores achieved by some players, and they cannot be verified as officially results are not released. This is a combined list from several online sources.
| score | name | notes |
|---|---|---|
| 50 | Pat McInally | from 1975. only player to achieve a perfect score? Played for Cincinnati Bengals from 1976 to 1985 |
| 49 | Mike Mamula | |
| 48 | Ryan Fitzpatrick | Quarterback, 2005 |
| 48 | Benjamin Watson | played New England Patriots (2004-2009), Cleveland Browns (2010+) |
| 48 | Kevin Curtis | from 2003 |
| 43 | Greg McElroy | 2011 |
| 43 | Jason Maas | 1999 |
| 42 | Drew Henson | NFL bust |
| 42 | Blaine Gabbert | 2011 |
| 41 | Kevin Barnes | 2009 |
| 41 | Justin Blalock | Falcons left guard, the highest of the 2007 draft class |
| 40 | Alex Smith | |
| 40 | Darrell Hackney | 2006 |
| 39 | Eli Manning | 2004 |
Other Notable Athlete Scores
| score | name | notes |
|---|---|---|
| 33 | Tom Brady | from 2000 |
| 22 | Tim Tebow | from 2010 |
| 22 | Brett Favre | |
| 15 | Dan Marino | Hall of Fame quarterback |
| 15 | Steve McNair | Pro Bowl quarterback |
| 15 | Randall Cunningham | Pro Bowl quarterback |
| 15 | Terry Bradshaw | Hall of Fame quarterback |
| 12 | Percy Harvin | 2009 NFL Rookie of the Year |
Some of the Lowest Scores Ever
| score | name | notes |
|---|---|---|
| 13 | Ray Lewis | LB, Ravens |
| 12 | Percy Harvin | WR, Vikings |
| 12 | Randy Moss | WR, 49ers |
| 11 | Hakeem Nicks | WR, Giants |
| 10 | Jeff George | QB |
| 10 | A.J. Green | WR, Bengals |
| 10 | Chris Johnson | RB Titans |
| 9 | Patrick Peterson | CB, Cardinals |
| 9 | Sebastian Janikowski | K Raiders |
| 6 | Vince Young | quarterback |
| 6 | Oscar Davenport | from North Carolina - not drafted |
| 6 | Frank Gore | running back, played for San Francisco (2005+) |
| 5 | Edward "Pig" Prather | safety |
| 4 | Darren Davis | played in CFL |
| 4 | Morris Claiborne | Cornerback. from 2012 |
References
- Brian D. Lyons, Brian J. Hoffman, and John W. Michel (2009). "Not Much More than g? An Examination of the Impact of Intelligence on NFL Performance". Human Performance 22 (3). In this study of 762 NFL players from 2002-2004 combines, the results of the Wonerlic test was found to be unrelated to (a) future NFL performance, (b) selection decisions during the NFL Draft, and (c) the number of games started in the NFL.
Related Pages
- About the NFL draft camp and all NFL Combine Results
- IQ Testing: Types, Uses, and Limitations
- Testing for concussion
- Profile of Mood States (POMS) questionnaire
- Sport Psychology Questionnaires
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