Now that's something I've never understood. What's the hurry? A lot of the time, they hold the connecting flight unless you're flying HP.
If you're getting off of a pond skipper, you can't disembark until the carry ons have been brought near the door. And on a jet, you're gonna clobber the gate agent who just doesn't want to walk fast.
Maybe he had to go to the bathroom? In a baggage cart?
What an idiot!