There’s a new king of the 40. John Ross zipped out a 4.22 on Saturday, the fastest-ever at the combine. And that will earn him some money on draft day.
I have seen a lot more of Ross than the other receivers. He played on the local team. And it became very apparent to me early in the season that he would be a first-round pick.
Ross isn’t a track guy playing football. He also does it on the field. He caught 81 passes and scored 18 touchdowns last year. He consistently gets behind defenses for long touchdowns, and in most games I saw, he was also open for long touchdowns that didn’t happen. Washington’s quarterback doesn’t have a cannon arm, and often the ball didn’t get there. I saw it on the first drive of the Pac-12 championship game, and there was an opportunity for an 80-plus yard touchdown at Arizona.
My nephew watched all of Washington’s game and says those kind of plays happened in every game.
I was most impressed by Ross in the Southern Cal game. That provided the opportunity to see Ross working against a cornerback who’ll probably also be a first-round pick. The Trojans had Adoree Jackson following Ross around on every play. And Ross ate him up, catching 8 passes for 154 yards and a touchdown. He scored a long touchdown (after Jackson fell down). More notably, Jackson had to give him a cushion, and Ross was able to consistently catch short passes and create yards after the catch. This isn’t a Torrey Smith type sprinter who lives only by the long ball.
Considering what Ross did in college, and his size (5-11, 190), for months I have expected Ross to be selected about 20th in the draft. Will Fuller and Brandin Cooks had similar measurables and ran close to 4.3, and they were both selected in that area.
But now that Ross has gone 4.22, I think he’ll be gone before the first 15 picks are completed. NFL teams love speed, so I think he’ll probably be chosen in the first 10.
There are two other wide receivers considered by most to be locks for the first round: Mike Williams of Clemson and Corey Davis of Western Michigan. But I’m expecting Ross will be chosen before either of those guys. Neither ran at the combine. Davis underwent an ankle surgery and might not run at all before the draft. Williams will run at his pro day, but he’s not a speed guy – he needs to win with his size and catch radius. But if Williams clocks out at something like 4.65, that will scare away some teams. Laquon Treadwell slipped behind three other wide receivers last year. In the past, Anquan Boldin and Keenan Allen (bigger, slower receivers) weren’t even chosen in the first round.
I expect some team will fall in love with Ross, and I think he’ll go on to be a solid choice.
Only blemish on Ross’ day was that he failed to collect on the offer by Adidas to give $1 million or an island to anybody able to break Chris Johnson’s combine record. Ross chose to run in Nike shoes, making him ineligible to collect that prize. But he still made himself a lot of money on Saturday.
In this century, by the way, 39 wide receivers chosen in the first round have run against the clock at the combine. Here’s how Ross compares against that group. I’m leaving out players who ran only at pro days, because then you’re getting into hand times and different conditions – with the combine, we have an apples to apples comparison.
For the guys who are physically similar to Ross (shorter, smaller receivers), I’ve placed a black dot in front of their names.
| 40 TIMES FOR RECEIVERS CHOSEN IN FIRST ROUND | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Pk | Player | Ht | Wt | Time |
| 2017 | ? | John Ross | 5-11 | 190 | 4.22 |
| 2013 | 8 | • Tavon Austin, St.L. | 5-8 | 176 | 4.28 |
| 2009 | 7 | Darrius Heyward-Bey, Oak. | 6-2 | 210 | 4.30 |
| 2016 | 21 | • Will Fuller, Hou. | 6-0 | 186 | 4.32 |
| 2014 | 20 | • Brandin Cooks, N.O. | 5-10 | 189 | 4.33 |
| 2015 | 29 | • Phillip Dorsett, Ind. | 5-10 | 185 | 4.33 |
| 2000 | 29 | • R. Jay Soward, Jac. | 5-11 | 177 | 4.34 |
| 2015 | 7 | Kevin White, Chi. | 6-3 | 215 | 4.35 |
| 2002 | 20 | Javon Walker, G.B. | 6-3 | 210 | 4.35 |
| 2004 | 7 | Roy Williams, Det. | 6-2 | 212 | 4.36 |
| 2012 | 30 | A.J. Jenkins, S.F. | 6-0 | 200 | 4.37 |
| 2014 | 12 | • Odell Beckham Jr., NYG | 5-11 | 198 | 4.38 |
| 2005 | 7 | Troy Williamson, Minn. | 6-1 | 203 | 4.38 |
| 2004 | 13 | • Lee Evans, Buff. | 5-10 | 197 | 4.39 |
| 2014 | 4 | Sammy Watkins, Buff. | 6-1 | 211 | 4.39 |
| 2011 | 6 | Julio Jones, Atl. | 6-3 | 220 | 4.39 |
| 2012 | 13 | Michael Floyd, Ariz. | 6-3 | 225 | 4.40 |
| 2007 | 2 | Calvin Johnson, Det. | 6-5 | 239 | 4.40 |
| 2009 | 22 | • Percy Harvin, Minn. | 5-11 | 184 | 4.41 |
| 2015 | 20 | Nelson Agholor, Phil. | 6-0 | 198 | 4.42 |
| 2015 | 4 | Amari Cooper, Oak. | 6-1 | 211 | 4.42 |
| 2013 | 29 | Cordarrelle Patterson, Minn. | 6-2 | 220 | 4.42 |
| 2007 | 27 | Robert Meachem, N.O. | 6-2 | 214 | 4.42 |
| 2015 | 14 | DeVante Parker, Mia. | 6-3 | 209 | 4.45 |
| 2014 | 7 | Mike Evans, T.B. | 6-5 | 231 | 4.46 |
| 2009 | 19 | Jeremy Maclin, Phil. | 6-0 | 198 | 4.48 |
| 2012 | 20 | • Kendall Wright, Tenn. | 5-10 | 191 | 4.49 |
| 2007 | 30 | Craig Davis, S.D. | 6-1 | 202 | 4.49 |
| 2011 | 4 | A.J. Green, Cin. | 6-4 | 211 | 4.49 |
| 2016 | 22 | Josh Doctson, Wash. | 6-3 | 195 | 4.50 |
| 2011 | 26 | Jonathan Baldwin, K.C. | 6-4 | 230 | 4.50 |
| 2013 | 27 | DeAndre Hopkins, Hou. | 6-1 | 218 | 4.51 |
| 2004 | 31 | Rashaun Woods, S.F. | 6-2 | 202 | 4.51 |
| 2007 | 23 | Dwayne Bowe, K.C. | 6-2 | 221 | 4.57 |
| 2005 | 10 | Mike Williams, Det. | 6-5 | 229 | 4.57 |
| 2000 | 21 | Sylvester Morris, K.C. | 6-3 | 208 | 4.60 |
| 2014 | 28 | Kelvin Benjamin, Car. | 6-5 | 240 | 4.61 |
| 2009 | 29 | Hakeem Nicks, NYG | 6-0 | 212 | 4.63 |
| 2004 | 3 | Larry Fitzgerald, Ariz. | 6-3 | 223 | 4.63 |
| 2004 | 15 | Michael Clayton, T.B. | 6-4 | 197 | 4.67 |
—Ian Allan