INDIANAPOLIS —- The most-anticipated numbers of the NFL's annual scouting combine are in.
No combine drill generates more buzz than the 40-yard dash, especially when it comes to the wide receivers. The running backs are sprinting on the field at Lucas Oil Stadium as I type this and the cornerbacks run tomorrow. But wide receivers! Flash! Flamboyance! This gets everyone's attention.
That includes the Vikings, who have a need at wide receiver and might even select one 11th overall.
The top three receiver prospects in this class all helped themselves today by running the 40-yard dash in under 4.5 seconds. West Virginia's Kevin White ran a blazing 4.35 at 6-foot-3 and 215 pounds. Alabama's Amari Cooper ran a 4.42. And Louisville's DeVante Parker clocked in at 4.45.
My knee-jerk reaction: It's safe to say Cooper and White will be long gone by the Vikings' first pick.
Other noteworthy 40 times include Missouri's Dorial Green-Beckham, who looked like a stud while running it in 4.49 seconds at 6-foot-5. And Michigan's Devin Funchess was a dud, ranking dead last among the receivers at 4.70 seconds. That reinforces the notion that Funchess will be considered a move tight end and not a wide-out, though Jimmy Graham is proof that a job title can be irrelevant.
Unofficially, 20 wide receivers ran the 40-yard dash in under 4.5 seconds today. So there's a lot of speed in this draft. Here are the top 10 times at the position, led by one of the best in recent history.
1. J.J. Nelson, UAB, 4.29 seconds
