Niners Nation After Dark: Wonderlic Test Time

Welcome back to Niners Nation After Dark. Hope you haven't had too many cocktails just yet because we've got a little bit of a test for you. The first day of the NFL Combine is complete and we now enter the exam period of day two for this first group of draft-eligible football players. Offensive linemen, tight ends, and special teamers checked in yesterday and took care of administrative matters, some medical examinations, and interviews. Later today, that first group will take care of basic measurements, drug tests, media sessions, and of course the infamous Wonderlic Test.

The Wonderlic Cognitive Ability Test is a fifty question test in which participants get twelve minutes to answer as many of the questions as they can. It's basically meant to see how people solve problems and generally apply themselves to particular knowledge situations. A high score is certainly a boon to a player's stock, but a high score doesn't help nearly as much as a low score can hurt.

It's interesting to note that Frank Gore reportedly (since no scores are ever officially released) scored a 6, but that was due in part to his dyslexia. Some teams have been known to use the Wachs test, which is a visual test and can better test individuals with dyslexia and other learning disabilities. According to Paul Zimmerman, the average scores by position:

Offensive tackle - 26
Center - 25
Quarterback - 24 (Most teams want at least 21 for a quarterback.)
Guard - 23
Tight end - 22
Safety - 19
Linebacker - 19
Cornerback - 18
Wide receiver - 17
Fullback - 17
Halfback - 16

If you're interested in taking the test, you can take a 10-question sample with a 2:26 timer or you can take Walter Football's 20-question example, which gives you five minutes. I took the 10 question test and got 8 out of 10, which projects out to a 40 on the Wonderlic. Looks like Alex and I have similar brains!