Who is the fastest safety in the 2022 NFL Draft?
The 2022 safety class has impressed with their speed, but no one is faster than Drew Hartlaub of Penn State, who ran a 4.24-4.28 second 40 yard dash at his pro day.
Along with the combine data that everyone knows, we’ve also collected data from all pro days in the 2022 cycle.
We now have verified 40 yard dash times from 215 safeties in the 2022 class, including athletes from every level of college football.
As with every other position, a few notable safeties didn’t run a 40 yard dash at either the combine or their pro day. These players will not be considered in this post, most notably Bryan Cook and Kerby Joseph.
The fastest verified times are:
1st – Drew Hartlaub, Penn State
40 Time: 4.28
Height: 5’11”
Weight: 170 pounds
Other Athletic Measurables: 36″ Vertical, 129″ Broad Jump, 6.75 cone drill, 4.15 shuttle
Division of Football: D1 FBS
Measured At: Pro Day
Additional Note: Former track star who was a productive special teams player only
2nd – Nick Cross, Maryland
40 Time: 4.34
Height: 6’0″
Weight: 215 pounds
Other Athletic Measurables: 21 bench reps, 37″ Vertical, 130″ Broad Jump, 6.85 cone drill, 4.21 shuttle
Division of Football: D1 FBS
Measured At: NFL Combine
T-3rd – JT Woods, Baylor
40 Time: 4.36
Height: 6’2″
Weight: 195 pounds
Other Athletic Measurables: 14 bench reps, 39.5″ Vertical, 128″ Broad Jump, 6.94 cone drill, 4.19 shuttle
Division of Football: D1 FBS
Measured At: NFL Combine
T-3rd – Tycen Anderson, Toledo
40 Time: 4.36
Height: 6’2″
Weight: 210 pounds
Other Athletic Measurables: 12 bench reps, 35.5″ Vertical, 123″ Broad Jump, 6.64 cone drill, 4.28 shuttle
Division of Football: D1 FBS
Measured At: NFL Combine
T-3rd – Percy Butler, Louisiana-Lafayette
40 Time: 4.36
Height: 6’0″
Weight: 195 pounds
Other Athletic Measurables: 13 bench reps, 31.5″ Vertical, 123″ Broad Jump, 6.90 cone drill, 4.38 shuttle
Division of Football: D1 FBS
Measured At: NFL Combine
6th – Lewis Cine, Georgia
40 Time: 4.37
Height: 6’2″
Weight: 200 pounds
Other Athletic Measurables: 36.5″ Vertical, 133″ Broad Jump
Division of Football: D1 FBS
Measured At: NFL Combine
7th – Dax Hill, Michigan
40 Time: 4.38
Height: 6’0″
Weight: 190 pounds
Other Athletic Measurables: 33.5″ Vertical, 122″ Broad Jump, 6.57 cone drill, 4.06 shuttle
Division of Football: D1 FBS
Measured At: NFL Combine
8th – Nazeeh Johnson, Marshall
40 Time: 4.38
Height: 5’10”
Weight: 200 pounds
Other Athletic Measurables: 16 bench reps, 42″ Vertical, 129″ Broad Jump, 6.97 cone drill, 4.29 shuttle
Division of Football: D1 FBS
Measured At: Pro Day
9th – Markquese Bell, Florida A&M
40 Time: 4.41
Height: 6’2″
Weight: 210 pounds
Other Athletic Measurables: 15 bench reps, 36.5″ Vertical, 123″ Broad Jump, 7.25 cone drill, 4.46 shuttle
Division of Football: D1 FCS
Measured At: NFL Combine
10th – Nolan Turner, Clemson
40 Time: 4.42
Height: 6’1″
Weight: 200 pounds
Other Athletic Measurables: 17 bench reps, 37.5″ Vertical, 122″ Broad Jump, 7.06 cone drill, 4.46 shuttle
Division of Football: D1 FBS
Measured At: Pro Day
Fastest Safeties Visualization
The chart above shows all the safeties in the 2022 draft class. The most well known safeties are depicted by their school’s logo, including Kyle Hamilton, Dax Hill, Jalen Pitre, Jaquan Brisker, Lewis Cine, Nick Cross, JT Woods, Verone McKinley, Tycen Anderson, Bubba Bolden, Markquese Bell, Dane Belton, Leon O’Neal, and Smoke Monday.
The further to the top left, the better. As is indicated by the green and red shading. Nick Cross and Tycen Andersen stand out on this graph, and considering weight shows that Kyle Hamilton still has plenty “playable” speed.
Just like my fastest linebacker post, the top safety prospects are so athletic that it inverted trend line. You’d expect that as weight goes up, 40 times gets slower. That’s generally the case, but with so many low level prospects who are both small and slow, the trend line is negative.
Every red dot is a prospect other than the traditional top prospects.
Click here to check out our official 2022 draft safety rankings.
