The NFL combine was held from Thursday, Feb 27, 2025 – Sunday , March 2 which is an event that allows draft prospects to show off their athletic ability to hopefully get drafted or increase their draft grade. The combine is a combination of players showing their craft in the game along with them showcasing their ability to lift and their athleticism.
The 40 yard dash is most definitely a fan favorite to watch. Watching how fast a player can get off the line and show full effort to reach their max speed is just something else. Fans have seen recent attempts that have come close to breaking the record time of 4.21 seconds from Xavier Worthy but beating that time is a challenge.
“The 40 yard dash is my favorite because it shows how fast people can be,” senior Landon Lopez said.
Another fun combine event to watch is the bench press. Quarterbacks usually don’t bench press but watching the offensive and defensive linemen is always a thrill. Something about a very large individual tossing up big weight is fun to watch. In 1999 defensive lineman Justin Ernest set the combine record with an insane 51 reps.
“There is absolutely nothing better than dudes tossing iron up and down,” sophomore Will Picago said.
The best performances in each event were not too shabby this year. The fastest 40 yard dash in this year’s combine was run by Cornerback Maxwell Hairston. He ran a time of 4.28 seconds. Cj Dippre had the most bench press reps with 32 as a tight end! Most of the time the offensive and defensive lineman lead the board with the most reps but having a tight end take first is pretty impressive.
There have been many players in the combine that have shown up and put on an absolute show, but there is always the other side when some players don’t perform how they intended to. This event is not showing players 100 percent true potential but rather just showing their fundamentals and athletic abilities.
For example Tom Brady ran a 5.28 in 2000 but later turned out to be a 7-time superbowl champion and the owner of three MVP awards. One player that has been trying his best to improve his draft grade is Travis Hunter. He claimed that he thinks he should be the number one draft pick after winning the heisman. At the end of the day it is all up to the NFL coaches to pick what they want.
“The combine doesn’t show the players true potential. There have been plenty of different people who have had bad combos and have had good careers.” Lopez said.
