So, I was fiddling around the other day, looking into some of the fresh faces in the league, specifically running backs. You know how it is, always trying to see who might make some noise. Evan Hull’s name kept popping up, and my curiosity got the better of me, especially about that one number everyone always obsesses over: his 40-yard dash time.
My first stop was the usual big sports websites. Sometimes you get lucky and they have all the combine data laid out neat and tidy. Not always straightforward for guys who might not have been at the main NFL Combine, or maybe their Pro Day numbers are buried deeper. I spent a good bit of time clicking through player profiles, draft analysis pages, that sort of thing. Then I dipped into a few forums, the kind where the real die-hards hang out. You’d be surprised what nuggets you can find there if you sift through the noise. Lots of opinions, that’s for sure.
After a bit of digging, I finally pinned down what seems to be his widely reported time. Around 4.47 seconds from his Pro Day, if memory serves. Now, that’s a respectable time, no doubt about it. Pretty quick. But it got me thinking, like it always does when the 40 time discussion comes up.
Because here’s the deal, and I’ve been saying this for years: that number, while interesting, it ain’t the whole story. Not by a long shot. Especially for a running back. I pulled up some of Hull’s game tape from Northwestern. Watched how he actually plays football, with pads on, with guys trying to take his head off. He looked like a solid, tough runner. Good vision, finds the holes, and doesn’t go down easy. That’s what I saw.
So, does that 4.47 tell me he can do all that? Partially, maybe. But it doesn’t tell me everything. It’s just one piece of a much bigger puzzle. People get so fixated on it. They see a blazing fast 40 and they think, “superstar!” Or they see a slightly slower one and write a guy off. It’s nuts.
When I’m really trying to get a feel for a player, especially a running back, the 40 time is just one checkbox on a long list. Here’s some of the other stuff I’m looking for, stuff that doesn’t always show up on a stopwatch:
- Game Speed: Does he play fast? Is he quick through the hole? That’s different from just track speed.
- Vision: Can he see the play develop? Can he find the cutback lane?
- Toughness: Can he break tackles? Can he get those dirty yards?
- Hands: Can he catch the ball out of the backfield? That’s huge in today’s game.
- Football IQ: Does he understand blocking schemes? Does he make smart decisions?
It’s like this old scout I used to know, a real character. He’d always grumble, “I don’t care if he can run a 4.2 if he trips over the yard line or fumbles when a linebacker breathes on him.” And he was right, you know? You gotta look at the whole player. This obsession with combine numbers, it’s like folks forget they’re evaluating football players, not Olympic sprinters.
So yeah, Evan Hull’s 40 time. Found it. It’s a decent number. But my “practice” told me to look beyond that, and I’d suggest others do the same. Watch the tape. See how they actually play the game. That’s where you find the real answers. That’s just how I see it, anyway, after all these years of watching this stuff.
