Maybe Gibson Was Faster Than Timed

According to Chris Anderson at EerSports.com, several analysts and NFL scouts are disputing the 4.50 40-yard dash time that West Virginia receiver Shelton Gibson ran today at the NFL Combine.

When West Virginia wide receiver Shelton Gibson ran a 4.50 on his first 40-yard dash attempt, it left television analysts visibly flustered. Mike Mayock pointed out that the film he watched showed Gibson leaving players behind time and again. Other analysts predicted, on air, that he could run the fastest time of anyone at the entire combine. So why was his time so pedestrian? Well, NFL agent Erik Burkhardt thinks the clock started early - and he says scouts from several NFL teams backed him up, saying they had Gibson in the 4.38-4.44 range.

As you can see from Erik Burkhardt’s tweet above, the NFL.com stopwatch is at 0.13 seconds before Shelton crosses the electronic starting line. This would put his unofficial time around 4.37 seconds, which is certainly more in line with what scouts saw during his 2015 and 2016 seasons. It isn’t the fastest time among the receivers but it is much better than the 4.50 he was shown to have run. Gil Brandt had Shelton at 4.39 seconds.