By: Chad Wilson – editor – Gridironstuds.com

When it comes to the NFL draft, obviously the 40 yard dash is the test that gets talked about the most. However, in recent years, there has been much discussion about another test and it’s the Wonderlich test.

In 2006, the big discussion was about a reported score of six on the Wonderlich test turned in by then University of Texas draft hopeful Vince Young. In the end, it turned out that Young had a score of 16 on the test. Some have tried to draw parallels to quarterback performance and intelligence. There’s still more data needed to come to a conclusion on that topic.

Some notable historical high scores on the Wonderlich test for QB’s: Drew Henson (42), Alex Smith (40), Eli Manning (39), Brian Griese (39), Tony Romo (37), Drew Bledsoe (36), Tom Brady (33), Troy Aikman (29), Peyton Manning (28), Ryan Leaf (27), Ben Rothliesberger (25), Brett Favre (22)

Some notable historical low scores on the Wonderlich test for QB’s: Tavaris Jackson (19), Derek Anderson (19), Vince Young (16), Dan Marino (15), Terry Bradshaw (15), Donovan McNabb (14), Jeff George (10).

According to the Wonderlich people, a score of 20 is consider average.

People are also under the assumption that the Wonderlich test is a test created by and only used by the National Football League. That is not the case. There are many companies that use the test on applicants as a measure of their basic intelligence. Below is a table showing the average scores of people by profession in comparison to scores by NFL players according to position.

Scores by Occupation	Scores by NFL position
Chemist – 31	Offensive tackle – 26
Programmer – 29	Center – 25
Journalist – 26	Quarterback – 24
Sales – 24	Guard – 23
Bank Teller – 22	Tight end – 22
Clerical worker – 21	Safety – 19
Security guard – 17	Linebacker – 19
Warehouse – 15	Cornerback – 18
	Wide Receiver – 17
	Fullback – 17
	Halfback – 16

The test consists of 50 questions. Players are given 12 minutes to complete the test and are scores are usually published with the amount of questions answered correctly. So a score of 31, means the individual had 31 correct answers out of 50.

So what prospective NFL player scored the highest ever on the Wonderlich test? Accoring to published reports, the honor goes to Pat McInally a former punter and wide receiver who attended Harvard and played 10 seasons for the Cincinnati Bengals (1976-1985). McInally posted the only confirmed 50 score on the Wonderlich which is a perfect score for the test.

Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Kevin Curtis is the current active player with the highest Wonderlich score at 48.

Out of the 2009 NFL draft class, the list below shows the highest and lowest scores of 2009 draftees:

High and Low Wonderlich Scores of 2009 Draftees
Highest		Lowest
Quarterbacks
Mike Riley (C. Washington) – 38		Rudy Carpenter (ASU) – 18
Stephen McGee (Tex A&M) – 35
Matt Stafford (UGA) – 35
Running backs
Glenn Coffee (Ala) – 27		Jeremiah Johnson (Ore) – 9
Tight Ends
James Casey (Rice) – 35		Bear Pascoe (Fresno) – 14
Wide Receiver
Tiquan Underwood (Rutgers) – 38		Marco Mitchell (Nevada) -9
Offensive Line
A.Q. Shipley (Penn St.) – 40		Robert Brewster (BallSt.) – 11
Greg Isdaner (WVU) – 38
Defensive Line
Larry English (N.Ill) – 34		Peria Jerry (Miss.) – 10
Darryl Richard (G.T.) – 33
Linebackers
Gerald McRath (S. Miss.) – 32		Jasper Brinkley (S. Car.) – 13
DeAndre Levy (Wisc.) – 31
Defensive Backs
Kevin Barnes (Mizou) – 41		Joe Brunett (UCF) -12
Vontae Davis (ILL) – 33		Macho Harris (Va Tech) – 12
		DeAngelo Smith (Cin) – 12
Kickers
Tim Masthay (Ken) – 31		Jose Martinez (Utep) – 17
Louie Sakoda (Utah) – 31

To get a complete list of 2009 NFL Wonderlich scores, go to Pro Football Weekly’s Wonderlich article, click here.