Who is Taylen Green? Arkansas QB sets records with vertical, broad jumps before running 4.36 at NFL combine

Arkansas' Taylen Green broke a pair of NFL combine records Anthony Richardson Sr. set in 2023 before going No. 4 overall in the draft.

The 6-foot-6, 227-pound Green logged a 43.5-inch vertical and leapt 11 feet, 2 inches in the broad jump, uncharted territory for quarterbacks in the event.

For reference, Richardson — listed at 6-foot-4, 244 pounds — posted a 40.5-inch vertical and flew 10 feet, 9 inches in the broad jump three years in Indianapolis' Lucas Oil Stadium.

Then Green ran a 4.36 40-yard dash, the second-fast time any QB has ever clocked at the combine.

NFL Network flashed a graphic on its broadcast comparing Green to Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver DK Metcalf, but analyst Charles Davis quickly dismissed the notion that Green is entertaining a position switch right now.

"I just asked him very simply, 'With the day you're having and your build and everything else, have people approached you about doing wide receiver drills?'" Davis reported on NFL Network.

"[Green] said, 'No, they have not.' 

"I said, 'What would you do if people did approach you to do wide receiver drills?' ... He said, 'Absolutely not. I'm a quarterback.'"

It's a sentiment many athletic quarterbacks before him have shared, most notably two-time NFL MVP Lamar Jackson, and admirably so.

But it's important to note that Jackson was a Heisman Trophy winner at Louisville. Green, on the other hand, didn't achieve nearly the same level of success in the collegiate ranks.

Interestingly enough, though, both played under Bobby Petrino.

Where did Taylen Green come from?

Green was a three-star prospect coming out of Lewisville High School in Texas. While there, he set the school record in the long jump and put up some nice dual-threat numbers on the gridiron. As a senior, Green threw for 22 touchdowns and ran for seven more.

He was the No. 660 overall recruit, including the 48th-highest rated QB in the 2021 class, according to the Rivals industry ranking.

Green committed to Boise State, where he spent the first three seasons of his college career. He redshirted in 2021 and then started a combined 22 games from 2022-23.

As a redshirt freshman in 2022, he eventually took over the QB1 job and helped the Broncos notch their first double-digit win season in three years. Green totaled 24 touchdowns — 14 passing and 10 rushing — and tossed only six picks, earning Mountain West Freshman of the Year honors.

His 61.3% completion percentage from that season ended up being a single-season career high.

In 2023, Green piloted Boise State to a Mountain West Conference title. Ahead of the 2024 season, he transferred to Arkansas, where he continued to showcase his athleticism but also inconsistency.

In six of the 12 games he played in this past season, he completed less than 60% of his passes. Additionally, Green was picked off 11 times, and Arkansas finished 2-10, although the Razorbacks were undeniably hamstrung by a defense that was eighth-to-last in the country with 33.8 points per game allowed in 2025. Still, Green's persistent scoring production, both through the air and on the ground, is noteworthy.

A record-breaking QB workout in Indy

NFL analyst Lance Zierlein described Green's delivery as "long" and "unorthodox" in his NFL.com prospect profile while also pointing out the 23-year-old signal-caller's tendency to put the ball in harm's way.

That said, it's clear Green can create off script, and he has the talent to make all the throws and perhaps the running ability to make up for those he misses.

But he needed a head-turning performance in the combine to draw Day 2 or early Day 3 interest. He delivered on Saturday.

As Richardson has showed so far in the NFL, however, athleticism, no matter how impressive, is just part of a complicated equation at the sport's most prestigious position.

Ultimately, Green's consistency as a passer, or lack thereof, will likely make or break his pro career.