[Denard officially runs 4.43 40 at NFL combine]
OP Edit: After all is said and done, Denard officially ran a 4.43. Shoelaces still officially tied. Done.
Initial hand time: First 40 for Denard: 4.34. Shoelaces tied, according to Michael Irvin.
Mod edit: Changed the title. If we're going to have two threads, this one should be reporting actual news. JGB.
February 24th, 2013 at 11:49 AM ^
February 24th, 2013 at 12:02 PM ^
February 24th, 2013 at 2:10 PM ^
He may not be faster than Bolt, but he is faster than Forrest
Edit: The blank of Denard can be found here
February 24th, 2013 at 11:50 AM ^
1 fake out of 5
February 24th, 2013 at 12:17 PM ^
Denard always deserves his own thread.
February 24th, 2013 at 11:51 AM ^
I think that's better than most of us were expecting, I'm glad he got that out of the way on his first run. If he somehow does better on his second attempt that'll be fantastic, but you've got to believe he's happy with the fastest time a Michigan player has ever run at the combine.
Congrats, Mr. Robinson.
February 24th, 2013 at 12:04 PM ^
No luck. 4.45 on the 2nd attempt.
February 25th, 2013 at 8:16 AM ^
February 24th, 2013 at 11:55 AM ^
Video embed
February 24th, 2013 at 1:32 PM ^
February 25th, 2013 at 1:25 AM ^
Haha, yeah it's a really really bad Russian accent. Maybe you have to be Russian to notice fake accents, because a lot of movies get away with the generic Borat accent. Still a great role/character nonetheless.
February 24th, 2013 at 11:53 AM ^
February 24th, 2013 at 12:38 PM ^
Denard Robinson from BuckeyeGrove.com on Vimeo.
February 24th, 2013 at 11:55 AM ^
February 24th, 2013 at 1:29 PM ^
February 24th, 2013 at 6:22 PM ^
A 4.43 is not the time a lot of people were expecting (which was in the 4.2 or 4.3 range).
I don't see how I was "wrong." A 4.43 is a good time, but it's not extremely fast, either.
February 24th, 2013 at 9:12 PM ^
.1 seconds is a mile's difference in the forty yard dash,
4.43 is fast but nothing special in the nfl...
February 25th, 2013 at 2:43 PM ^
By my calculations it's about 7.5", but I guess that's enough distance if your QB isreally accurate.
February 24th, 2013 at 11:56 AM ^
February 24th, 2013 at 11:57 AM ^
that open knowledge about his still-healing nerve makes clear to teams that his upside remains huge.
February 24th, 2013 at 11:57 AM ^
He just ran his second 40 at 4.45
February 24th, 2013 at 11:58 AM ^
In case you were curious, here's how that compares to some of the top 40's in combine history:
Chris Johnson - 4.24 (2008)
Tavon Austin - 4.25 (2013)
Marquise Goodwin - 4.25 (2013)
Darrius Heyward-Bey - 4.25 (2009)
Champ Bailey - 4.28 (1999)
Jerome Mathis - 4.28 (2005)
Jacoby Ford - 4.28 (2010)
Bo Jackson also reportedly ran a 4.12 in 1986. Don't think that was laser timed though FWIW.
February 24th, 2013 at 2:48 PM ^
February 24th, 2013 at 11:58 AM ^
he had a more trouble getting out of the blocks on the second... probably because he's so unaccustomed to running with tied shoes!
February 24th, 2013 at 12:01 PM ^
I'm thinking it has more to do with the starting stance that no one actually uses.
February 24th, 2013 at 12:04 PM ^
Wouldn't Denard use that same stance for indoor track?
February 24th, 2013 at 12:38 PM ^
No...in track you have both hands on the ground and are in starting blocks as ooposed to one arm up and flat ground for the 40
February 24th, 2013 at 12:52 PM ^
Thanks...I didn't notice that before watching the video.
February 24th, 2013 at 12:05 PM ^
So Denard is the only one using this stance at the combine? I'm thinking his 'slow' time might have more to do with a kid who worked for 4 years at the QB position competing with guys who spent 3 to 4 years at the WR position. That's the difference that makes a difference. Your point contains no difference at all.
February 24th, 2013 at 12:51 PM ^
February 24th, 2013 at 1:54 PM ^
About half the guys have false started on their runs. Denard did it once on the first run and twice on the second. That wasted burst costs them. My point is that it would be more applicable if they just did a 2-point stance that WRs use or the 3-point stance that OL, TE, and FB use. If they use one of those stances, they'll get much better and more consistent results.
February 24th, 2013 at 12:05 PM ^
February 24th, 2013 at 12:10 PM ^
All this "they know how fast he really is" is just blind homerism. I guess that while Denard is really faster than his time, everyone else is either equal or slower than their times. The point is that Denard spent the last few years focusing more on throwing, timing, reading, while the other guys focused more on running, catching, and blocking. He's really fast, but he's really fast for a guy who played QB, not for a guy who played WR or RB.
February 24th, 2013 at 12:14 PM ^
Ummm, I'm pretty sure 4.34 is fast for anyone, not just a QB. And there's a difference between in game speed and straight line track speed, game speed being a combination of straight line speed and quickness. Watching a highlight tape will show you that Denard clearly has incredible in game speed.
February 24th, 2013 at 12:15 PM ^
February 24th, 2013 at 12:47 PM ^
February 24th, 2013 at 12:17 PM ^
February 24th, 2013 at 12:34 PM ^
I am no expert, but my guess woudl be that I think you could say the same thing - they have tape, and they are certainly sending what tape they have to to NFL scouts.
February 24th, 2013 at 12:12 PM ^
is it like an SAT score and look at your best one? or is it an average?
February 24th, 2013 at 12:18 PM ^
They don't win anything for this, so there would be no point in either of those. It's an overall assessment. They're just looking at how fast the guys are. If a guy ran a 4.34 on one, he's pretty dang fast. He ran slower the second time, so he didn't get as good of a start, but he's still capable of crazy speed. The start is essentially neutralized in a game so I don't really see much of a difference between hundredths of a second for scouting purposes.
February 24th, 2013 at 12:27 PM ^
Well, this year the fastest time does win a contract with Adidas.
February 24th, 2013 at 12:28 PM ^
They look at your SAT score and wonderlick score and average them with respect to the number of standard deviations away from the mean score.
February 24th, 2013 at 12:13 PM ^
February 24th, 2013 at 12:15 PM ^
I'd rather he doesn't get the fastest time cause I want to see him win in the NFL, and being with the Raiders is no way to win games...
February 24th, 2013 at 12:28 PM ^
Al Davis
February 24th, 2013 at 12:19 PM ^
looks like tavon austin just jumped up a lot of teams draft boards. That boy fast