Football tight end benchmarks: what each level actually looks like
These are the numbers Athlete Quotient scores every football tight end against - not a coach's opinion, and not a chart copied from a message board.
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Tight End benchmarks by level
| Metric | D1 elite | D1 | D1 floor | D2 | D3 | HS varsity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bench Press 225 (reps) | 20 | 16 | 13 | 11 | 8 | 5 |
| Broad Jump (inches) | 115 | 109 | 104 | 101 | 97 | 93 |
| 40-Yard Dash (sec) | 4.65 | 4.75 | 4.85 | 4.92 | 5.00 | 5.10 |
| Pro Agility / 5-10-5 (sec) | 4.40 | 4.52 | 4.62 | 4.68 | 4.75 | 4.85 |
| 10-Yard Split (sec) | 1.58 | 1.65 | 1.70 | 1.73 | 1.78 | 1.83 |
| 3-Cone Drill (sec) | 7.10 | 7.25 | 7.40 | 7.50 | 7.60 | 7.75 |
| Vertical Jump (inches) | 33 | 31 | 29 | 28 | 26 | 24 |
Your numbers are on this ladder. Type them once and the scorer places them, 0-100, against these same benchmarks.
Score my numbersThe bar for a tight end is not the bar for a football player in general. Against the sport-wide D1 rung, this position asks for bench press 225: 16 (4 lower than the sport-wide football D1 rung), 40-yard dash: 4.75 (0.13 slower than the sport-wide football D1 rung), 3-cone drill: 7.25 (0.20 slower than the sport-wide football D1 rung).
Check your number
Where do your numbers land?
Pick a metric, type your number, and it is read against the tight end ladder above, right here on the page. It is never sent and never stored.
One number is one rung. Your full AQ Score reads all five dimensions against these same tables - free, no account needed.
Place your numbers on this ladder
A table tells you the bar. Your AQ Score tells you where you stand against it - all five dimensions, your gaps, and the level you actually fit, scored by the same engine these benchmarks come from. Your first score is free.
Score my numbersNo account needed. Your free score finds the gaps. The Playbook turns every gap into a weekly training plan, with fueling guidance included - built from your own measured numbers.
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Other football benchmarks
These are measured sport-wide rather than by position, so they apply to a tight end the same way they apply to anyone else on the roster.
| Metric | D1 elite | D1 | D1 floor | D2 | D3 | HS varsity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Completion % | .680 | .610 | .560 | .550 | .530 | .520 |
| Squat Max (lbs) | 500 | 425 | 375 | 350 | 315 | 285 |
| TD/INT Ratio | 4.0 | 2.2 | 1.6 | 1.5 | 1.3 | 1.2 |
| Throw Velocity (mph) | 60 | 55 | 52 | 51 | 49 | 47 |
Common questions
What is a good bench press 225 for a tight end?
Athlete Quotient's D1 benchmark for a tight end is 16. The D2 rung is 11, D3 is 8, and high school varsity is 5. The elite D1 rung is 20.
What is a good broad jump for a tight end?
Athlete Quotient's D1 benchmark for a tight end is 109. The D2 rung is 101, D3 is 97, and high school varsity is 93. The elite D1 rung is 115.
How to read these
Each column is a rung on the Athlete Quotient benchmark ladder - the bar the engine scores every athlete against - not a cutoff and not an entry price. Being under a rung does not close a door. It tells you the size of the gap, which is the only number you can actually train against.
These are Athlete Quotient's own benchmarks. Where a published college figure exists we use it; where none exists, the rung is ours. We would rather say that than claim a source we do not have.
These tables are the same ones the scoring engine uses, exported from it rather than retyped, so a page can never quietly disagree with a score. More: how AQ builds benchmarks.