40-yard dash

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The 40-yard dash is a sprint covering 40 yards (36.58 m). It is primarily run to evaluate the speed 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 event.

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.[citation needed] 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 coach knows that a player runs 40 yards in 4.5 seconds, he will be able to leave the line of scrimmage when a punt is kicked, and reach at 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, the method of timing a 40-yard dash can affect the accuracy by as much 0.5 seconds (with the manual stopwatch method). The National Football League (NFL) did not begin using partial electronic timing (started by hand, stopped electronically) at the NFL Scouting Combine until 1990.[citation needed] 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.

In track and field races, the runner must react to the starting gun, which takes approximately 0.24 seconds, based on FAT timing. For electronically timed 40-yard dashes, the runner is allowed to start when he wishes, and a timer hand-starts the clock. This aspect means that comparisons with track times are impossible given that a reaction time is not factored in. Furthermore, 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.

Jacoby Ford, who ran a 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).[1] Justin Gatlin was significantly slower at the NFL Combine, achieving a 40-yard dash best of 4.42 s, but holds the fifth fastest 60-meter dash ever with 6.45 seconds.[2][3] This highlights the difficulties in comparing track running times to football 40-yard times due to the different timing methods.[4]

Records

In 1986, Auburn's Bo Jackson ran the fastest 40-yard dash at the NFL combine, with a reported time of 4.12. A time of 4.18 run by Jackson within the same week added some support to the legitimacy of the times.[5][6] Deion Sanders ran a 4.27-second 40-yard dash in 1989.[7] However, these times have a large margin of error since they were recorded using hand timers.

In 2013, Carlin Isles recorded a time of 4.22 at a Detroit Lions facility during a workout.[8]

Records at the NFL Scouting Combine

This is a list of the official 40-yard dash results of 4.30 seconds or better recorded at the NFL Scouting combine since 1999, the first year electronic timing was implemented at the NFL Scouting Combine.[9][10]

Time Name Height Weight Position College Year Draft
4.24 Rondel Menendez 5 ft 9 in (175 cm) 192 lb (87 kg) Wide receiver Eastern Kentucky 1999 #247 overall by Atlanta Falcons
4.24 Chris Johnson 5 ft 11 in (180 cm) 192 lb (87 kg) Running back East Carolina 2008 #24 overall by Tennessee Titans
4.26 Jerome Mathis 5 ft 11 in (180 cm) 184 lb (83 kg) Wide receiver Hampton 2005 #114 overall by Houston Texans
4.26 Dri Archer 5 ft 8 in (173 cm) 173 lb (78 kg) Running back Kent State 2014 #97 overall by Pittsburgh Steelers
4.27 Stanford Routt 6 ft 2 in (188 cm) 193 lb (88 kg) Cornerback Houston 2005 #38 overall by Oakland Raiders
4.27 Marquise Goodwin 5 ft 10 in (178 cm) 181 lb (82 kg) Wide receiver Texas 2013 #78 overall by Buffalo Bills
4.28 Champ Bailey 6 ft 0 in (183 cm) 192 lb (87 kg) Cornerback Georgia 1999 #7 overall by Washington Redskins
4.28 Jacoby Ford 5 ft 9 in (175 cm) 190 lb (86 kg) Wide receiver Clemson 2010 #108 overall by Oakland Raiders
4.28[11] J. J. Nelson 5 ft 10 in (178 cm) 156 lb (71 kg) Wide receiver UAB 2015 #159 overall by Arizona Cardinals
4.28 DeMarcus Van Dyke 6 ft 1 in (185 cm) 187 lb (85 kg) Cornerback Miami 2011 #81 overall by Oakland Raiders
4.29 Fabian Washington 5 ft 11 in (180 cm) 188 lb (85 kg) Cornerback Nebraska 2005 #23 overall by Oakland Raiders
4.29 Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie 6 ft 2 in (188 cm) 184 lb (83 kg) Cornerback Tennessee State 2008 #16 overall by the Arizona Cardinals
4.29 Josh Robinson 5 ft 10 in (178 cm) 199 lb (90 kg) Cornerback UCF 2012 #66 overall by Minnesota Vikings
4.30 Darrent Williams 5 ft 9 in (175 cm) 176 lb (80 kg) Cornerback Oklahoma State 2005 #56 overall by Denver Broncos
4.30 Tye Hill 5 ft 10 in (178 cm) 185 lb (84 kg) Cornerback Clemson 2006 #15 overall by St. Louis Rams
4.30 Yamon Figurs 5 ft 11 in (180 cm) 174 lb (79 kg) Wide receiver Kansas State 2007 #74 overall by Baltimore Ravens
4.30 Darrius Heyward-Bey[12] 6 ft 2 in (188 cm) 210 lb (95 kg) Wide receiver Maryland 2009 #7 overall by Oakland Raiders

Average time by position

According to a five-year NFL combine report, wide receivers and cornerbacks had the fastest average times at 4.55, followed by running backs at 4.59. The following average times were measured between 2008-2012 at the NFL combine.[13]

Position Time
Wide receiver 4.55
Cornerback 4.55
Running back 4.59
Safety 4.62
Outside Linebacker 4.74
Tight End 4.77
Fullback 4.80
Inside Linebacker 4.80
Quarterback 4.87
Defensive End 4.88
Defensive Tackle 5.13
Offensive Center 5.30
Offensive Tackle 5.32
Offensive Guard 5.36

References

  1. 60 Metres - men - senior - indoor. IAAF. Retrieved on 2013-05-29.
  2. Lee, Jimson. "Justin Gatlin 4.42 40 Yard Dash". SpeedEndurance.com, 4 April 2008. Accessed 30 April 2009.
  3. Justin Gatlin. IAAF. Retrieved on 2013-05-29.
  4. 60 Metres - men - senior - indoor. IAAF. Retrieved on 2013-05-29.
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  13. http://www.milehighreport.com/2013/2/12/3969128/some-clarification-is-in-order-average-speed-by-position