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EspañolEvery year, the NFL scouting combine allows for college football prospects to interview with NFL teams one-on-one for the first time. Franchises also use the time to get medical checkups for each prospect.
But the reason fans tune in every year is to see eye-popping numbers in the athletic tests.
Who runs the fastest 40-yard dash, jumps the highest in the vertical jump and goes the furthest in the broad jump. Those numbers, in addition to the physical measurements, give teams and fans a fuller picture of each prospect.
These numbers are put together to determine a relative athletic score (RAS), a metric created by Kent Lee Platte (also known as MathBomb on X). It uses data from prior combines and pro days by position to generate a grade from 0 to 10 for prospects on how athletic they are for their size. It’s not just strictly speed and power, hence the “relative” part of the score.
This year’s combine saw some stars on the athletic testing days. Using Platte’s RAS score, here are the top 10 performers from the 2026 NFL Scouting Combine:
WR Jeff Caldwell, Cincinnati
- RAS: 10.00
Caldwell may not have the big-school pedigree of his peers at the position but he shined in Indianapolis. Caldwell ran the 40-yard dash in 4.31 seconds and posted the best 10-yard split at the NFL combine at 1.48 seconds. His 42-inch vertical jump was tied for second among all wide receivers and his broad jump of 11 feet, 2 inches was second-best among the group as well.
Caldwell posted these numbers after measuring in at 6-foot-5 and 216 pounds, among the biggest wideouts at the combine. His mix of size and athleticism could see him move up some boards come April.
RB Mike Washington Jr., Arkansas
- RAS: 10.00
Notre Dame’s Jeremiyah Love is the top running back in this year’s class by far. As such, the NFL combine offered a chance for other prospects to make their case to be one of the next-best at the position and Washington made the most of it.
At 6-foot-1 and 223 pounds, he built a reputation as a downhill runner for the Razorbacks behind Green. That was on full display in Indianapolis.
Washington led all running backs by hitting 4.33 seconds in the 40-yard dash as well as 1.51 seconds in the 10-yard split. His vertical jump of 39 inches was second-best at the position, as was his 10 foot, 8 inch broad jump. A performance like that will confirm his viability as a starter in the NFL.
QB Taylen Green, Arkansas
- RAS: 9.99
Of the quarterbacks who participated in athletic testing at the combine, Green was the runaway outlier athletically this year.
Green’s tools were already highly touted given his proficiency as a true dual-threat quarterback for the Razorbacks. What he can do in the pocket needs work but as an open-field threat, there are few on his level in this class.
Green ran the 40-yard dash in 4.36 seconds - by far the fastest among all quarterbacks and in the top 15 of all position in Indianapolis. He led all quarterbacks again in the vertical jump at 43 ½ inches and broad jump at 11 feet, 2 inches (and was the only passer to hit 11 feet). All of this at 6-foot-6 and 227 pounds.
LB Sonny Styles, Ohio State
- RAS: 9.99
Styles came to Indianapolis aiming to make a statement and put together one of the most incredible performances we’ve ever seen at the NFL combine, regardless of position.
His 43½ inch vertical jump is a record for anyone his size (6-foot-5, 244 pounds) at the NFL combine. It wasn’t just the vertical jump, though; his broad jump of 11 feet, 2 inches was the best among all linebackers and tied for second-best among all players at the combine. The five players tied with Styles or ahead of him were at least five pounds lighter than him.
His 40-yard dash of 4.46 seconds was the best of the position in the class and only one other player in the top 10 was at least 240 pounds. His athleticism at that size makes him one of the best athletes in combine history. With a performance like that in addition to his tape from Ohio State, he may not make it out of the top 10 picks come April.
OT Monroe Freeling, Georgia
- RAS: 9.99
College right tackles lead the big boards for the 2026 NFL Draft class which offered a chance for career left tackles to gain the most ground in testing this week in Indianapolis. Freeling did that better than most anyone else.
The former Bulldogs left tackle first measured in with prototypical size for the position at 6-foot-7 and 315 pounds with 34¾-inch long arms. If scouts were already excited about that, his testing only confirmed that. Freeling ran the 40-yard dash in 4.93 seconds - tied for fourth-best among all offensive linemen. But crucially he had the second-best 10-yard split in the group at 1.71 seconds. For the position, that split carries a bit more weight considering the demands of the position at the NFL level.
His vertical jump of 33½ inches was fifth-best among all offensive linemen and his 9 foot, 7 inch broad jump was tied for third. All of that comes together to make him one of the best performers at the NFL combine.
IOL Micah Morris, Georgia
- RAS: 9.99
Freelings’ fellow Bulldog offensive lineman had himself a week as well. Morris is more stout than his compatriot on the left side of the line, standing 6-foot-5 and 334 pounds. That didn’t stop him from impressing in the athletic tests.
He ran the 40-yard dash in 5.09 seconds which was middle-of-the-pack but his 10-yard split of 1.73 seconds was tied for fourth among all offensive linemen. His vertical jump of 29½ inches wasn’t a standout among the offensive linemen but is impressive considering his 334-pound frame. His broad jump – a more important measure for linemen in general – was impressive, though, at 9 feet and 4 inches. That was tied for eighth-best among all offensive linemen in Indianapolis.
WR Bryce Lance, North Dakota State
- RAS: 9.98
Lance’s older brother Trey was an athletic quarterback with traits to become a top-five pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. The younger Lance is similarly gifted.
Lance ran the 40-yard dash in 4.34 seconds – fifth-best among all wide receivers. He backed that up with a 41½-inch vertical jump and 11 feet, 1 inch in the broad jump to show off his power. He put up these numbers at 6-foot-3 and 204 pounds. His slighter frame is the only thing that kept him from hitting a higher number.
DT DeMonte Capehart, Clemson
- RAS: 9.97
Interior defensive line saw some standout performances athletically but what Demonte Capehart did after measuring in at 6-foot-5 and 313 pounds was special.
His 4.85-second 40-yard dash was fourth-best at the position. Crucially, the three players who ran faster than him were all at least 22 pounds lighter than the Clemson prospect.
He showed off in the jumps as well with a 33½ inch vertical jump – third-best among all interior defensive linemen – and an 8 foot, 11-inch broad jump. All of that made him the top defensive lineman by RAS in Indianapolis this week.
S Jalon Kilgore, South Carolina
- RAS: 9.97
Kilgore follows in the footsteps of former Gamecocks safety Nick Emmanwori as one of the best athletes in the class. At 6-foot-1 and 210 pounds, he wasn’t an outlier measurement-wise but the testing changed that.
Kilgore hit 4.40 seconds in the 40-yard dash which tied for fifth among all safeties in the class. His 37-inch vertical was among the top half of performers at the position. He shined in the broad jump at 10 feet, 10 inches which tied for the best at the position. Teams looking for some strength will be pleased with his 16 repetitions in the bench press.
CB Charles Demmings, Stephen F. Austin
- RAS: 9.97
Every year, small school prospects show up at the combine and make a name for themselves. Demmings was the man to do that this time around.
Demmings ran the 40-yard dash in 4.41 seconds which tied for fifth-best among all cornerbacks. He truly set himself apart in the jumps. His 42-inch vertical jump was second-best among all cornerbacks, as was his 11-foot broad jump. He did all of this at 6-foot-1 and 193 pounds which is ideal size for outside cornerbacks. A performance like this could give him a boost come April’s NFL draft.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Sonny Styles, Mike Washington lead RAS standouts from 2026 NFL combine