Ohio State Buckeyes wide receiver Carnell Tate says the 40-yard dash carries too much weight, but do the numbers support his claim?
The Buckeyes held their pro day in Columbus on Wednesday to help prospects boost their stock before the 2026 NFL Draft (scheduled April 23-25 in Pittsburgh). Tate participated in drills but didn’t run the 40 again, despite posting an underwhelming time at the 2026 NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis.
Tate (6-foot-2, 192 pounds) ran a 4.53 at the combine, the eighth-slowest time in his position group. Some NFL teams reportedly clocked him running faster, but his mark remains unchanged on his NFL.com scouting report.
Carnell Tate explains why he didn’t run the 40 again at pro day
The WR said he was considering running again, as teams have expressed concerns about his speed. However, he didn’t because the 40-yard dash can be “overvalued.”
“I think I’m a great football player,” Tate said, via ESPN’s Daniel Oyefusi. “My speed…the combine is one time, but ultimately I’m a great football player. When you put the pads on, it’s another level.”
Is the 40-yard dash overvalued?
The 40-yard dash is the signature event at the combine, but its relevance has been debated for years. This is football, not track.
To see if Tate has a point, we’re going to compare his 40 time to the players who finished top five in the NFL in receiving yards during the regular season in 2025. If a player ran his 40 at a pro day instead of the combine, that’s noted in parentheses.
Player
Receiving Yards
40 time
Seattle Seahawks WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba
1,793
4.48 (pro day)
Los Angeles Rams WR Puka Nacua
1,715
4.57
Dallas Cowboys WR George Pickens
1,429
4.47
Cincinnati Bengals WR Ja’Marr Chase
1,412
4.38 (pro day)
Detroit Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown
1,401
4.51 (pro day)
The only WR slower than Tate was Nacua. However, none of these wideouts, except for Chase, are what you would call speedsters. If you calculate the mean, their average time is 4.48 seconds.
So, Tate’s time is below average among elite NFL WRs, but it’s not a wide margin. Plus, the 40-yard dash only measures speed in a straight line. It can’t measure how quickly he can change direction, a key when running routes.
The Ohio State star didn’t have a problem with this. In 2025, Pro Football Focus credited Tate with 3.02 yards per route run (number of routes divided by receiving yards to measure efficiency), No. 12 among 200 FBS WRs. Meanwhile, Nacua ranked first in Y/RR (3.71) among 168 eligible pass-catchers during the regular season in 2025.
“He’s a guy who’s going to be a No. 1 wide receiver for some organization and somebody that has done it at a high level,” Ohio State head coach Ryan Day said of Tate, per Oyefusi. “He’s smooth, he’s physical, and he’s going to be a guy that can certainly have an impact on Day 1 walking into a team.”
The 40-yard dash helps teams measure speed, but it’s not the only factor that determines whether a prospect will be a quality WR. Scouts should keep this in mind when evaluating Tate.
