Fastest 40-yard dash times in NFL Combine history

Which players have posted the fastest 40-yard dash times in NFL Combine history? These speedsters made an impression in Indianapolis.

The highlight of the NFL Scouting Combine each year is the running of the 40-yard dash. It’s the event that proves who is fast and who is fast fast.

Speed in shorts and a t-shirt doesn’t always translate to NFL success, but it certainly doesn’t hurt.

The fastest officially timed mark in NFL Combine history was first achieved by Tennessee’s Donte’ Stallworth in 2002. His time was matched by Washington’s John Ross in 2017.

Most recently, Baylor’s Kalon Barnes posted a 40-yard dash of 4.23 seconds in 2022 while UTSA’s Tariq Woolen also broke into the Top 5 with a time of 4.26 seconds.

Fastest 40-yard dash times in NFL Combine history

1. 2017 WR John Ross — 4.22
   2002 WR Donte’ Stallworth — 4.22
2. 2022 CB Kalon Barnes — 4.23
3. 2008 RB Chris Johnson  — 4.24
4. 2014 WR Dri Archer — 4.26
   2022 CB Tariq Woolen — 4.26
5. 2020 WR Henry Ruggs III — 4.27
   2021 WR Anthony Schwartz — 4.27
   2013 WR Marquise Goodwin — 4.27
   2005 CB Stanford Routt — 4.27

Blazing fast 40-yard dash times locked in high-first round selections for Ross and Stallworth to the Bengals and Saints respectively. Stallworth played in the league for a decade. Ross spent four years with the Bengals, most recently playing for the Giants in 2021.

However, Barnes and Woolen weren’t able to turn their success in Indianapolis into first-round selections. The former had to wait until the Panthers grabbed him in the seventh round while Woolen went to the Seahawks in the fifth.

Barnes bounced around practice squads as a rookie but Woolen looked like a true steal for Seattle. He started 16 games and led the league with six interceptions.