Carnell Tate’s Slower 40-Yard Dash Time Mirrors NFL Legends With Similar Speed

As the sports world over exaggerates the importance of the NFL combine, Carnell Tate is currently the latest victim due to a disappointing 40.

He ran a 4.53 officially, though there are reports that it should have been faster, and obvious concern has grown because of his speed.

There have been plenty of wide receivers to record a time over 4.50 and plenty of them turned out just fine. Here’s a look at some of the company Tate is a part of in recent memory.

Larry Fitzgerald

A member of the most recent Hall of Fame class, Fitzgerald came into the league running a 4.63 at the NFL combine.

Obviously he was able to make up for that with his route running and his hands, but some of the best plays of Fitzgerald’s career was still him showing off some breakaway speed.

He had a burst in the Super Bowl across the middle of the field to give the Cardinals a brief lead over the Pittsburgh Steelers. He also had a huge catch and run against the Green Bay Packers in the playoffs, making several defenders miss.

As long as you can run smart, sometimes the difference between 4.3 and 4.6 speed isn’t as drastic as people act.

Mike Evans

Even though Evans' terrific streak of 11 straight 1,000-yard seasons finally ended with an injury this year, he has turned himself into a potential Hall of Famer despite running a 4.53 at the combine.

Evans always possessed the breakaway speed he needed while using a big frame and great route running to find his way open.

Evans has a size advantage over Tate, but they both have similar abilities of making contested catches and tracking the ball.

Keenan Allen

Ask any Chargers fan, Allen’s speed is irrelevant to who he is as a player. Allen ran a 4.71 at the combine and still turned into one of the most consistent wide receivers of the last decade.

Allen and Tate are built daily similarly, both around 6’2” 200 pounds. Tate has the speed advantage, and if he can sharpen his route running skills the way Allen did while holding onto that speed, he’ll be more than worth a top 10 pick.

Davante Adams and Puka Nacua

The Ram’s teammates both struggled at their co bine. Nacua ran a 4.57 and Adams had a 4.56.

Adams has put together a borderline Hall of Fame caliber career, Nacua has been one of the league’s best talents over the past two seasons, and both guys just led Matthew Stafford to an MVP season.

The team didn’t have a player with “elite” speed at either wideout one or two, yet the Rams still had arguably the best passing attack in the league.

Combine speed and football speed are different, and Adams and Nacua are both great reminders of that.

Jarvis Landry

Arguably the best wide receiver in Dolphins and Browns recent memory, Landry ran 4.77 combine.

Coming out of college, Landry is a very similar prospect to Tate. Both have great hands and a great knack of finding the football. Both had questions about their speed after bad 40 times. Both were overshadowed by an elite wide receiver next to them in college (Jeremiah Smith and Odell Beckham Jr.). Both are going to turn out fine.

The lesson here is that speed is not the only factor that matters. 4.5 level speed can still be enough to break away from anyone in the NFL. Tate’s route running, tracking and hands are all sharp enough that he’ll still become an immediate impact in the deep game, and he’s quick enough to generate some YAC in the short game.

His combine shouldn’t dissuade teams from taking him inside the top 10.