Cole Payton
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Cole Payton had a strong showing at the combine.
North Dakota State quarterback Cole Payton has emerged as one of the most-hyped signal callers in the NFL Draft this year, and his combine performance on Saturday backed it up.
Payton ranked toward the top among all players in each athletic drill in Indianapolis. He hit the second-best vertical jump of the day at 40 inches, and that put him in the top-three all-time for quarterbacks, too.
Payton’s mark ranks third behind former Florida quarterback Anthony Richardson and former Arkansas quarterback Taylen Green. Similarly, Payton’s 10-foot, 10-inch broad jump is second all-time behind Green’s 11-foot, 2-inch broad jump on Saturday.
A 6-foot-3 and 232-pound quarterback, Payton also had second-best finish in the three-cone drill at 7.12 seconds. His third-ranked finishes included the 40-year dash at 4.56 seconds, 10-yard split at 1.57 seconds, 20-yard shuttle at 4.36 seconds. Payton finished with an estimated athleticism score of 83 for fourth.
Analyst: Cole Payton Won at Combine
Sports Illustrated’s Justin Melo named Payton as one of six quarterbacks “who won the NFL combine” on Saturday. For as much hype as Payton has received since a strong Senior Bowl showing, Melo called Payton “underrated” after his combine performance.
“North Dakota State’s Cole Payton is an underrated candidate to be the second or third quarterback drafted,” Melo wrote. “He only has one year of starting experience under his belt, but he maximized that opportunity. Payton threw for 2,719 yards and 16 touchdowns, rushing for 777 yards and 13 additional scores as an athletic, dual-threat quarterback.”
“Payton is uber athletic, leaping the second-best vertical [40 inches] and broad jump [10-foot-2],” Melo added. “Those would’ve been leaderboard numbers in most quarterback classes, but Green posted historically athletic results. Payton also ran a 4.56. NFL teams are incredibly intrigued by him.”
An Omaha, Nebraska, native, Payton played at NDSU from 2021 to 2025, where the Bison utilized his rushing skills before former starting quarterback Cam Miller graduated in 2025. Miller is now a backup for the Miami Dolphins.
Payton rushed for 1,919 yards and 31 touchdowns on 287 attempts in his career with the Bison. His passing stats, mostly from one season as a starter, include a 70.3% completion rate, 3,190 yards, 21 touchdowns, and six interceptions.
Despite the unusual ending for Payton and the Bison with an early FCS playoff loss, he finished third in the Walter Payton Award voting and made All-American. The former Omaha West High standout was Nebraska’s Gatorade Player of the Year in 2020, and he was a two-sport athlete with baseball.
Cole Payton Chose NDSU For the QB Lineage
Payton joined a growing line of quarterbacks from NDSU to participate in the combine on Saturday.
It started with three-time national champion Brock Jensen in 2014, followed by Carson Wentz in 2016, Easton Stick in 2018, Trey Lance in 2021, and Miller in 2025. Both Wentz and Lance went in the top three of the draft, and four of the five former Bison greats are one NFL rosters today.
“You talk about the lineage at NDSU. It’s a big reason I went to NDSU, and a big reason why I stayed,” Payton told Bison 1660 AM on Feb. 13. “I felt that starting one year at NDSU would mean more than starting two, three, four years anywhere else.”