Wonderlic Test scores are the major news coming from the NFL Draft this week as Johnny Manziel scored the highest of the top 3 quarterbacks during the NFL Combine in February with a score of 32. Blake Bortles reportedly scored a 28, while Teddy Bridgewater scored a 20. Does this mean that Manziel has cemented his spot as the #1 quarterback in this draft? Does this mean that Manziel is a can't miss prospect who is destined to win many Super Bowls and be enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame?
In my article Johnny Manziel 2014 Draft Analysis, I stated that I believed Manziel is the top quarterback prospect in this year's draft. Since the writing of that article Manziel had a very successful pro day and now the news has leaked that his Wonderlic Test score is the highest of the top 3 quarterbacks. To me this is just another piece of evidence that Manziel is the top quarterback in the 2014 NFL Draft.
So, what exactly is this Wonderlic Test:
- It consists of 50 questions, 12 minute time limit
- The number of correct answers corresponds to an intelligent quotient
- Many psychologists believe that cognitive ability, as tested on the Wonderlic, is the most reliable predictor of an individual's professional performance
- It is used by a variety of employers, not just the National Football League
- NFL has been using it for about 30 years
- Higher scoring applicants are supposed to learn more rapidly, master more complex material, and exercise better judgement
- Lower scoring applicants tend to require more time, detailed task instruction, , and less challenging job routines.
- 25 is average score for QBs and offensive linemen
- Other positions average about a 20
Super Bowl Winning QB's Wonderlic Test Scores:
Eli has the highest Wonderlic test score of any Super Bowl winning QB so far,
- Terry Bradshaw, 15
- Troy Aikman, 29
- Tom Brady, 33
- Steve Young, 33
- Eli Manning, 39
- Phil Simms, 10
- Ben Roethlisberger, 25
- John Elway, 29
- Russell Wilson, 28
- Joe Flacco, 27
- Drew Brees, 28
- Aaron Rodgers, 35
- Kurt Warner, 29
- Trent Dilfer, 22
- Brett Favre, 22
As I stated earlier, a Wonderlic Test score is a piece of information that should be considered when evaluating quarterbacks and all positions. As you can see above with the exception of Phil Simms and Terry Bradshaw every Super Bowl winning quarterback that I could find had at least a 22, with the average being 23.
I definitely believe that the score shows what type of offensive system a quarterback can handle. Although Bradshaw is no dummy, it was always joked about during his playing days that he was not the sharpest tool in the shed. But, he sure could throw a good deep ball and he had two Hall of Fame receivers in Lynn Swann and John Stallworth. The Steelers' offensive system was not very complex during Bradshaw's time. Simms was the ultimate game manager. His job was to not make a big mistake, hand the ball off a bunch and let that great defense win games and championships.
Johnny Manziel is still my #1 rated quarterback in the 2014 NFL Draft and the Wonderlic Test has proven that he can be successful running any type of offensive system he is asked to do.