The 40-Yard Dash: Overrated?

The 40-Yard Dash: Overrated?
By Jake Bailey, TheSportsStand.com (4/20/07)

Ever since the institution of the NFL Draft, teams have examined and scrutinized every draftee to see who is worthy of their pick. The 40-Yard Dash is one of the most well-known, and partially infamous drills players run. Many scouts often bedaub the importance of the 40-time, but it is often a good tool.

A good or bad 40-time can raise or drop a player's stock. Often, teams won't draft a player because they ran a poor 40-time. Many times, teams will draft a player based on the 40-time alone. How many times does a player just line up in a track stance and run 40 yards? Rarely. Game speed is more important.

Some notable examples of people who ran poor 40-times, but ended up being really good players are Anquan Boldin and Jerry Rice. Anquan Boldin fell to the second round based on his poor 40-time but is currently one of the best receivers in the league. Jerry Rice ran a poor 40-time, but many scouts said that he had great game speed. The stats don't lie, Jerry Rice is the greatest receiver of all time.

There have been many times when a player who became great also ran a good 40-time. Deion Sanders, who is argued to have run the fastest 40-time ever recorded for a player, is one of the greatest athletes of all time, and is the only player to play in both a World Series and Super Bowl. Champ Bailey is also argued to have run the fastest 40-time, and he is considered by many to be the greatest Cornerback of all time, coincidentally, fighting for that spot with Deion Sanders. The debate for who is better will be saved for another day.

The 40-Yard Dash is a great measuring tool but can be horrible if over-analyzed.

2007 Draft Notable 40-Times (Top Prospects Highlighted):

QB: ----Irrelevant
RB: Adrian Peterson, Oklahoma (4.40), Kenny Irons, Auburn (4.45)
WR: Yamon Figurs, Kansas St. (4.30), Calvin Johnson, Georgia Tech (4.35)
TE: Greg Olsen, Miami (4.51), Michael Allan, Whitworth (4.71)
OL: Allen Barbre, Missouri Southern (4.84), Gabe Hall, Texas Tech (4.91)
DL: Gaines Adams, Clemson (4.64), Jacob Ford, Central Arkansas (4.65)
LB: Quincy Black, New Mexico (4.42), Antwaan Barnes, Flordia Int. (4.43)
DB: Chris Houston, Arkansas (4.32), LaRon Landry, LSU (4.35)

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