40-yard dash

The 40-yard dash is a sprint covering 40 yards (36.576 m). It is primarily run to evaluate the speed and acceleration of American football players by scouts, particularly for the NFL Draft but also for collegiate recruiting. A player's recorded time can have a heavy impact on his prospects in college or professional football. This was traditionally only true for the "skill" positions such as running back, wide receiver, and defensive back, although now a fast 40-yard dash time is considered important for almost every position. The 40-yard dash is not an official race in track and field athletics, and is not an IAAF-recognized race.

The origin of timing football players for 40 yards comes from the average distance of a punt and the time it takes to reach that distance.[1] Punts average around 40 yards in distance from the line of scrimmage, and the hangtime (time of flight) averages approximately 4.5 seconds; therefore, if a player can run 40 yards in 4.5 seconds, he will be able to leave the line of scrimmage when a punt is kicked, and reach the point where the ball comes down just as it arrives.

Timing method and track comparisons

In terms of judging a person's speed, the best method of timing is through lasers which start and stop the times when passed through. A laser start (from a stationary position) is more accurate for measuring pure speed as it does not register a runner's reaction time, however, this method of timing a 40-yard dash can affect the accuracy by as much as 0.5 seconds with the manual stopwatch method.

The National Football League (NFL) did not begin using partial electronic timing (i.e. started by hand, stopped electronically) at the NFL Scouting Combine until 1999.[2][3] For purposes of measurement at the Combine, the run is made along the lower sideline from the 40 yard-line to the end zone, which has built-in rundown space, and for electronically timed 40-yard dashes, the runner is allowed to start when they wish, and a timer hand-starts the clock.

In contrast, track and field races have the runner react to a starting gun, which takes approximately 0.24 second (based on FAT timing); further to this, IAAF rules state any runner with a reaction time of less than 0.1 second is subject to disqualification.

This aspect means that comparisons with track times are essentially impossible given that a reaction time is not factored in, and the use of hand-timing in the 40-yard dash can considerably alter a runner's time: the methods are not comparable to the rigorous electronic timing used in track and field.[4]

For example, Jacoby Ford, who ran 4.28 s in the 2010 NFL Combine, had a collegiate best of 6.51 s in the 60-meter dash (outside the top-40 of the all-time lists).[4]

Records

Eyewitnesses and well-sourced reporters had long maintained that Darrell Green recorded a time of 4.09 at the Washington Redskins' training camp in 1986. After many years, Green, who has a longstanding reputation of reluctance and humility about discussing his personal achievements,[5] confirmed on March 24, 2021 via his official Twitter account that 4.09 seconds was indeed his personal best.[6]

Bo Jackson claimed to have run a 40-yard dash with a time of 4.13 s,[7][8] and there were also reports of Jackson running a 4.12 at the 1986 combine.[9][10] Texas Tech's Jakeem Grant was hand-timed by a New Orleans Saints scout as running a 4.10 in 2016, potentially beating Jackson's time.[11] In the early 1980s, Baylor's Gerald McNeil ran a 4.19-second 40-yard dash before being signed to the United States Football League (USFL).[12] Deion Sanders ran a 4.27-second 40-yard dash in 1989.[13]

In 2013, rugby union Carlin Isles recorded a time of 4.22 at a Detroit Lions facility during a workout.[14]

In 2017, Olympic sprinter Christian Coleman ran a time of 4.12 seconds on turf in response to claims that NFL players are as fast as Usain Bolt.[15]

A year and a half after he retired from active competition, Usain Bolt ran a 4.22 in running shoes and a tracksuit at a promotional event for the Super Bowl in Atlanta, Georgia on February 2, 2019.[16]

NFL Scouting Combine

This is a list of the official 40-yard dash results of under 4.31 seconds recorded at the NFL Scouting combine since 1999, the first year electronic timing was implemented at the NFL Scouting Combine.[17][18]

TimeNameHeightWeightPositionCollegeYearDraft R
4.22John Ross5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)190 lb (86.2 kg; 13.6 st)Wide receiverWashington2017No. 9 overall by Cincinnati Bengals [19]
4.23Kalon Barnes5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)183 lb (83.0 kg; 13.1 st)CornerbackBaylor2022No. 242 overall by Carolina Panthers
4.24Rondel Menendez5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)192 lb (87.1 kg; 13.7 st)Wide receiverEastern Kentucky1999No. 247 overall by Atlanta Falcons
Chris Johnson5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)192 lb (87.1 kg; 13.7 st)Running backEast Carolina2008No. 24 overall by Tennessee Titans
4.26Jerome Mathis5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)184 lb (83.5 kg; 13.1 st)Wide receiverHampton2005No. 114 overall by Houston Texans
Dri Archer5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)173 lb (78.5 kg; 12.4 st)Running backKent State2014No. 97 overall by Pittsburgh Steelers
Tariq Woolen6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)205 lb (93.0 kg; 14.6 st)CornerbackUTSA2022No. 153 overall by Seattle Seahawks
4.27Henry Ruggs III6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)190 lb (86.2 kg; 13.6 st)Wide receiverAlabama2020No. 12 overall by Las Vegas Raiders
Stanford Routt6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)193 lb (87.5 kg; 13.8 st)CornerbackHouston2005No. 38 overall by Oakland Raiders
Marquise Goodwin5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)181 lb (82.1 kg; 12.9 st)Wide receiverTexas2013No. 78 overall by Buffalo Bills
4.28Champ Bailey6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)192 lb (87.1 kg; 13.7 st)CornerbackGeorgia1999No. 7 overall by Washington Redskins
Jacoby Ford5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)190 lb (86.2 kg; 13.6 st)Wide receiverClemson2010No. 108 overall by Oakland Raiders
Jalen Myrick5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)200 lb (90.7 kg; 14.3 st)CornerbackMinnesota2017No. 222 overall by Jacksonville Jaguars [20]
J. J. Nelson5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)156 lb (70.8 kg; 11.1 st)Wide receiverUAB2015No. 159 overall by Arizona Cardinals [21]
DeMarcus Van Dyke6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)187 lb (84.8 kg; 13.4 st)CornerbackMiami2011No. 81 overall by Oakland Raiders
Tyquan Thornton6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)181 lb (82.1 kg; 12.9 st)Wide receiverBaylor2022No. 50 overall by New England Patriots
4.29Fabian Washington5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)188 lb (85.3 kg; 13.4 st)CornerbackNebraska2005No. 23 overall by Oakland Raiders
Zedrick Woods 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) 205 lb (93.0 kg; 14.6 st) Safety Mississippi 2019 Undrafted [22]
Javelin Guidry5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)191 lb (86.6 kg; 13.6 st)CornerbackUtah2020Undrafted
4.30Darrent Williams5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)176 lb (79.8 kg; 12.6 st)CornerbackOklahoma State2005No. 56 overall by Denver Broncos
Tye Hill5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)185 lb (83.9 kg; 13.2 st)CornerbackClemson2006No. 15 overall by St. Louis Rams
Yamon Figurs5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)174 lb (78.9 kg; 12.4 st)Wide receiverKansas State2007No. 74 overall by Baltimore Ravens
Darrius Heyward-Bey6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)210 lb (95.3 kg; 15.0 st)Wide receiverMaryland2009No. 7 overall by Oakland Raiders [23]
Jamel Dean 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 206 lb (93.4 kg; 14.7 st) Cornerback Auburn 2019 No. 94 overall by Tampa Bay Buccaneers [24]

Average time by position

According to a five-year NFL combine report, wide receivers and cornerbacks had the fastest average times at 4.48, followed by running backs at 4.49. The following average times were measured between 2000 and 2012 at the NFL combine for players who played at least 5 games.[25]

Position Time
Wide receiver 4.48
Cornerback 4.48
Running back 4.49
Free safety 4.53
Strong safety 4.55
Outside linebacker 4.60
Tight end 4.70
Inside linebacker 4.76
Fullback 4.80
Defensive end 4.80
Quarterback 4.93
Defensive tackle 5.06
Center 5.30
Offensive tackle 5.32
Offensive guard 5.37

References

  1. MacCambridge, Michael (2005). America's Game: The Epic Story of How Pro Football Captured a Nation (1st ed.). New York: Anchor Books. p. 29. ISBN 978-0-375-72506-7. Intent on building a fast team, [Paul Brown in the mid-1940s] began timing players in the 40-yard dash, rather than the 100, reasoning that the 40 was a more meaningful measure of true football speed: about the distance a player would cover on a punt.
  2. "isbn:0345545141 - Google Search". books.google.com.
  3. Davenport, Gary. "How Are 40-Yard Dash Times Recorded?". bleacherreport.com.
  4. 60 Metres - men - senior - indoor. IAAF. Retrieved on May 29, 2013.
  5. "Cornerback Darrell Green--Humble Man in a Humbling Job". Los Angeles Times. September 16, 1989.
  6. https://twitter.com/darrellgreen28/status/1374944738902745088
  7. Rothstein, Matthew (February 29, 2016). "Bo Jackson Talking About His 4.13 40-Yard-Dash Is A Reminder Of How Superhuman He Was". Uproxx.com.
  8. Tanier, Mike (July 16, 2015). "NFL Urban Legends: Bo Jackson and the Too-Fast-to-Be-True 40-Yard Dash". BleacherReport.com.
  9. Based on Cooney, Frank (23 February 2008). "Combine 40-yard times -- Nothing is official". The Sports Xchange. Archived from the original on 19 August 2009. Retrieved 3 March 2010., plus updates.
  10. Cooney, Frank (February 24, 2008). "With 40-yard dash times, nothing's quite 'official'". USA Today.
  11. Haislop, Tadd (March 11, 2016). "Texas Tech's Jakeem Grant clocked at 4.10 in 40-yard dash". SportingNews. Retrieved March 12, 2016.
  12. Argovitz, Jerry; Miller, J. David (2013). "Chapter 40: A Better Mousetrap". Super Agent: The One Book the NFL and NCAA Don't Want You to Read. New York: Sports Publishing. ISBN 978-1613210680.
  13. Hessler, Warner (April 23, 1989). "NFL General Managers Moan About Another Diluted Draft". Daily Press. Retrieved March 1, 2012.
  14. "Detroit Lions sign rugby player Carlin Isles to practice squad". Daily News. New York. December 26, 2013.
  15. "Olympic sprinter shows up John Ross". USA Today. May 2017. Retrieved July 26, 2017.
  16. Clark, Nate (February 2, 2019). "Usain Bolt having fun at Super Bowl, 'ties' NFL Combine 40-yard dash record". NBC. Retrieved February 2, 2019.
  17. "Top Performers 2006-2011". July 16, 2011.
  18. Cooney, Frank (March 1, 2011). "Officially, Van Dyke is combine's fastest player". USA Today.
  19. "John Ross III runs 40-yard dash in record 4.22 seconds at NFL Combine". Sportsnet. March 4, 2017. Retrieved March 4, 2017.
  20. "Jalen Myrick Combine Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved March 6, 2017.
  21. "NFL on Twitter". Twitter. February 21, 2015. Retrieved February 21, 2015.
  22. "NFL Events: Combine Top Performers 2019". NFL.com. Retrieved May 12, 2019.
  23. "Darrius Heyward-Bey - WR - Maryland - 2009 NFL Combine Results". NFL Combine Results.
  24. "NFL Events: Combine Top Performers 2019". NFL.com. Retrieved May 12, 2019.
  25. Topher Doll (February 12, 2013). "Some Clarification is in Order: Average Speed by Position". MileHighReport.com. Archived from the original on November 11, 2018. Retrieved November 11, 2018.

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