Myles Garrett’s Ridiculous 40 Time Should Lock Him In As The Top NFL Draft Pick

Myles Garrett came into the NFL Combine as the presumptive No. 1 overall pick and after running the 40-yard dash on Sunday morning in Indianapolis, the defensive end standout from Texas A&M all but locked himself in to being taken by the Cleveland Browns.

Garrett, who measured in at 6’4, 272 pounds, ran an 4.64 for his 40 and might as well have walked out of Lucas Oil Stadium, Deion Sanders style, because no one really needs to see much more to confirm that he is indeed a physical freak worthy of the top pick.

To put Garrett’s time in perspective, that 4.64 was the best among all defensive linemen and was more than two-tenths better Derek Barnett from Tennessee, considered the other top 4-3 defensive end in the draft. Auburn stud defensive end Carl Lawson’s 4.67 is the next-fastest time among the top prospects, while Jonathan Allen (more an interior lineman than edge rusher) ran a 5.0 flat.

Garrett’s time would also make him the second-fastest quarterback in this year’s draft, as only Trevor Knight (Garrett’s Texas A&M teammate) ran a faster time among the quarterbacks. Garrett’s time equals that of Tennessee QB Josh Dobbs and was two-hundredths faster than Clemson star Deshaun Watson.

For quarterbacks currently in the league, there are very few that will be able to out-run Garrett if he forces them out of the pocket.

Garrett has been compared to former South Carolina star and current Houston Texans defensive end Jadaveon Clowney since Garrett got to Texas A&M (Garrett broke Clowney’s SEC freshman record for sacks), and his blistering 40 and Combine performance only furthers that comparison.

Garrett’s 4.64 is terrifying when considering his size, but it’s still a full tenth slower than what Clowney ran in 2014 when he sealed his status as the top player in the NFL Draft.

After two years battling injuries, Clowney finally broke out in 2016 for the Texans and if Garrett can reach the level Clowney reached this year he will make whatever team takes him (presumably the Browns) very happy.

Update: Myles Garrett can also jump very, very high. His 41-inch vertical is nearly four inches higher than Clowney’s at the Combine.