What A Wonderlic World

Report: Tebow below average on test
ESPN.com news services

While former Florida quarterback Tim Tebow wowed evaluators with his on-field performance at the NFL combine last month, he scored a 22 out of 50 on the Wonderlic test, the Palm Beach Post reported, citing an NFL source.

The 12-minute test measures an individual's learning and problem-solving abilities.

According to the Post, the average Wonderlic score for an NFL quarterback is 24. The newspaper also reported that the quarterback prospects in Mel Kiper Jr.'s latest rankings on ESPN.com -- Sam Bradford of Oklahoma (36), Colt McCoy of Texas (25) and Jimmy Clausen of Notre Dame (23) -- scored higher than Tebow.

To put those scores in perspective, the Post compared Wonderlic numbers of run-of-the-mill NFL quarterbacks such as Alex Smith (40) and Matt Leinart (35) to those of Pro Football Hall of Famers Dan Marino and Jim Kelly (both 15) and an established star such as Donovan McNabb (14) of the Philadelphia Eagles.

Tebow is a Heisman Trophy winner who won two national championships at Florida. According to the newspaper, he graduated with a 3.66 GPA majoring in family, youth and community services.

Grades and Wonderlic scores likely won't determine how his NFL future will unfold. In an attempt to better adapt to the pro game, Tebow is changing the way he holds a football, shifting it from his waist to his shoulder. He intends to show off his refined style on his pro day for scouts at the University of Florida on Wednesday.

"There are things that I can get a lot better at -- my fundamentals," Tebow said in February. "I've never been asked to shorten or quicken my release and not have a loop in it. The changes I'm making have gone very well and it's becoming more and more natural to me."

A little info from Wkikpedia on the Wonderlic test:

The Wonderlic Personnel Test is a twelve-minute, fifty-question test used to assess the aptitude of prospective employees for learning and problem-solving in a wide range of occupations. The score is calculated as the number of correct answers given in the allotted time. A score of 20 is intended to indicate average intelligence.

Though used in a wide variety of institutions, the test has become best known for its use in the NFL pre-draft assessments of prospective football players.

Pat McInally is the only football player to record a confirmed perfect score of 50. Ryan Fitzpatrick, also of Harvard and quarterback for the Buffalo Bills, had also been rumored to have scored a 50 in only nine minutes. However, Fitzpatrick denied this, saying that he had left at least one answer blank. The Wall Street Journal later reported that Fitzpatrick's actual score was 48 but that his claim of finishing in only nine minutes was accurate.

As of 2005, Kevin Curtis was reported to be tied with Fitzpatrick and Benjamin Watson at 48, the highest score of any active NFL player. During the 2009 Combine NFL Network's Rich Eisen mentioned that Mike Mamula the "Workout Warrior" scored a 49; USA Today has also reported on this claim.

Boy, ESPN sure does like to build people up and then destroy the shit out of them don't they. I don't blame Todd McShay for blasting Tebow's throwing ability but taking a shot at a guy when he's SLIGHTLY below the average score on the Wonderlic seems like a low blow. The average for QBs is a 24. He scored a 22.

I know it comes as a surprise when Tebow isn't perfect at something but let's not blow this out of proportion. He may not be Albert Einstein but he ain't Corky from 'Life Goes On' either. Cut the kid some slack or he'll cut your foreskin off.