I figured that the 40-yard dash was my chance to shine.
Sure, I hadn't run a timed 40 in over 10 years, but I do a fair amount of conditioning work. I was going to be firmly in the middle of the combine pack, right?
No way.
The 40-yard dash is the most famous combine drill and perhaps its simplest. All you have to do is run 40 yards as fast as you can in a straight line. That's it. Sure, there's a lot
The fastest time in the 2013 NFL combine was posted by Buffalo Bills WR Marquise Goodwin (Texas). He ran it in 4.27 seconds. The slowest time was by former Glenville State OL Mark Jackson, who ran it in 5.65 seconds.
In case you were wondering, Tennessee Titans RB Chris Johnson still holds the record for fastest electronically-timed 40 at the combine. He ran a 4.24 in 2008. Goodwin's time last year is the second-fastest electronically timed 40.
I knew I wasn't going to come close to them, but I guessed I had a chance to break 5.00. I wanted to go after Tampa Bay Buccaneers QB Mike Glennon (North Carolina State), who ran a 4.94.
Nope. My fastest attempt of the three I ran was 5.55 seconds. Perhaps it was my lack of technique work (which can shave tenths off the time of someone untrained) or the combination of a slick gym floor and my shoes. Yeah, I'll go ahead and blame it on the gold shoes and the floor.
My time was good enough to beat three people at last year's combine: Jackson, Detroit Lions OL Larry Warford (Kentucky) and Dallas Cowboys C Travis Frederick (Wisconsin). But that's it. And let's be real, the 40-yard dash is pointless for a lineman. Very rarely does top-end speed matter.
Thankfully, it doesn't matter for a blogger either.
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This was the final part of a five-part series on the NFL combine. Previous videos: Vertical and broad jumps, bench press, 20 and 60-yard shuttle drills, 3-cone drill
Nick Bromberg is the assistant editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
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