It’s clear Penn State RB Saquon Barkley killed the NFL Combine, to the point one anonymous assistant coach wants to “punch myself in the nuts” in order to draft him.
At the Combine, Saquon Barkley showed he’s both an absurdly fast big guy and an absurdly strong little guy
The Penn State stud had one of football’s best workouts ever.
Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images
But taking his size into account makes his numbers even more astounding.
1. His 4.4 40-yard dash was likely the second best ever by an RB 230 pounds or heavier.
Records are a little shady for any Combine before 2006, which is how far back NFL.com’s database goes. You’ll rarely hear NFL Network cite any numbers before then. But adding in Pro Football Reference’s numbers, which go back to 2000, and community-collected numbers like these into the mix, makes it even clearer that Barkley did something special.
So here’s what we know, as far as big dudes running 4.4 or better:
- In 2011, 231-pound RB Mario Fannin ran a 4.38, per the NFL.
- WR Calvin Johnson’s 4.35 takes the overall crown here. So yeah, Megatron’s the kind of athlete we’re talking about at this point.
2. His 41-inch vertical is likely the new record among all 230-pound-plus RBs.
The best since 2000 among big RBs was Eric Shelton’s 38.5 in 2005, and you’d have to go back to 1991 (meaning venturing into ever more dubious bookkeeping) to find one that comes any closer: Nick Bell’s 39.5.
Still more than a full inch’s difference.
Barkley’s only a couple inches shy of the record among all RBs, in fact, set by 195-pound Jerry Azumah and 200-pound Jay Hinton.
3. On the flip side, his 29 bench reps rank about No. 5 among all RBs 235 pounds or smaller.
His relatively large body moves way too fast, and his relatively small body packs way too much power. Both things are true, from certain points of view.
4. Lmao just look at this rofl
5. His only other drill, the shuttle, ranks nicely too.
Among 230-pound-plus RBs, his 4.24 ranks No. 12 since 2000.
6. We already knew he’s a workout beast.
Barkley, whom Bruce Feldman named college football’s biggest workout freak, broke off the biggest power clean in Penn State history, including linemen:
He’s reportedly also benched 390 and squatted 495 for seven reps, and he’s topped his Combine bench performance before:
7. And as for what he looks like on the field ...
He was a bit hit-or-miss at times, but good gracious, the hits!
Punch away, NFL GMs.
Punch away.
See More:
