Andy Richardson
People sometimes place a little too much stock in 40 times at the combine; fast running the 40-yard dash doesn't always make for an electrifying NFL player. A good recent example is Tennessee's Chris Henry, who ran a 4.40 at the combine in 2007, tying Adrian Peterson for the fastest time among running backs. Henry hasn't made an impact in the NFL and probably never will.
Then again, Tennessee went to the well a year later by using its first-round pick on Chris Johnson, who ran an incredible 4.24 at the 2008 combine. That worked out for them: Johnson was arguably the most impressive of last year's rookie running backs, finishing the season with 1,228 rushing yards and 9 TDs. Several other speedy backs, including Darren McFadden (4.33 at the combine) and Steve Slaton (4.44), look like they could be good NFL pros.
A year later, based on the combine numbers, the speed isn't there -- at least not at the running back position. Nobody came close to Johnson and McFadden's times; nobody beat Slaton, either. Virginia's Cedric Peerman (4.45) was fastest among running backs, while highly regarded prospects Beanie Wells (4.59) and Knowshon Moreno (his best time was an unofficial 4.55) disappointed. Doesn't necessarily mean the draft class won't have some quality pros, but it's worth mentioning that most of last year's more impressive rookie runners -- Johnson, McFadden, Slaton, Matt Forte (4.46), Jonathan Stewart (4.48) -- ran the 40 under 4.5. Felix Jones (4.47) also showed flashes of ability prior to getting hurt.
Plenty of speed at the wide receiver position, where five different players ran at least a 4.40 or faster. With receivers, too, that's hardly the end-all and be-all for making quality pros, but consider that two of the fastest wideouts at last year's combine -- DeSean Jackson (4.35) and Eddie Royal (4.39) -- had very impressive rookie seasons.
Top performers at each position can be seen right here.
--Andy Richardson
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