Chiefs NFL Draft target's scouting report should terrify the NFL

The NFL Scouting Combine is the quintessential dog and pony show of football. For the televised event, draft prospects gathered to have their measurable attributes officially recorded through a set of drills. Whether a vertical jump or 40-yard dash has any significance for an offensive lineman or not, the drill is accurately measured and recorded just as it is for a receiver.

Among the pomp and vanity of the NFL Scouting Combine, no drill draws more undue attention than the 40-yard dash. Many prospects spend months training for the sprint before the televised event takes place. Regardless of their football talent, running a millisecond faster could be raise their draft stock and earn them millions of more dollars.

Texas wide receiver Xavier Worthy emerged as the biggest storyline of the 2024 NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis. Despite facing flu-like symptoms during his training, the 5-foot-11 wideout ran the 40-yard dash in a record-breaking 4.21 seconds.

Once he had everyone's attention, he urged them to watch his film.

Xavier Worthy suggests NFL scouts look beyond 40-yard dash

After the Combine drill, it seemed all anyone saw was speed, and Worthy knew the narratives could change the perception of his ability. Receivers are typically placed in one of two categories: fast or technical. If scouts followed speed, they could potentially miss whether or not Worthy has the fundamentals to be great at the position.

“Turn on the film[,] the routes there,” Worthy posted on March 3. “Don’t let that lil 40 mess your head up.”

When the 20-year-old receiver piqued everyone's interest for his speed, he wanted to make sure everyone knew he was capable of more than just streaming down seam routes and turning vertical routes into touchdowns. He wanted to draw attention to his route-running ability.

“I feel like before the combine, if I would have run something like a 4.3, they would have been like, ‘Oh, he’s a route runner’ — but now that I run a 4.2, it’s like, ‘He’s just fast,’” Worthy said, h/t Yahoo Sports. “My film’s there. I ran every route in the route tree. I got open on every route, was successful at every route. The film doesn’t lie.”

Exhibiting speed at the NFL Draft isn't a bad thing. In fact, it is one of the few traits that cannot be coached or defended. Some of the greatest wide receivers of this generation, from Randy Moss to Tyreek Hill, utilized their speed to leave defenders in the dust. The problem arises when speed is considered to be the deciding factor in a wide receiver's ability.

Wide receiver John Ross broke the 40-yard dash in 2017. Captivated by his speed, the Cincinnati Bengals selected Ross with the ninth overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft — just ahead of Patrick Mahomes, Marshon Lattimore, and Deshaun Watson. Ross never panned out. He played in just 37 games before his career fizzled out following the 2021 NFL season. He caught just 62 passes for 957 yards and 11 touchdowns during his five-year career.

Speed is something that should make scouts wary when it diverges from game tape, one AFC scout told Yahoo Sports.

“It lined up with his game speed and what I felt about how he plays the game,” the AFC scout said. “He’s not gonna be John Ross. This guy is like a f---ing good player. He just so happens to be fast as s---."

The league's best wide receivers were never great just because of their speed. San Francisco 49ers legend Jerry Rice, widely considered to be the greatest wide receiver in NFL history, ran the 40-yard dash in 4.71 seconds. Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua, who had a breakout rookie campaign in 2023, was drafted in the fifth round after running a 4.56-second 40-yard dash.

Wide receivers have to burst off the line and beat a defensive back's hands, understand the route concept and defensive coverage, gain leverage, run crisp routes by transition into breaks and accelerating out of them. And, finally, they have to catch the ball.

The 5-foot-11 wide receiver prospect has generated a ton of buzz as a potential fit for the Kansas City Chiefs.

"Get Patrick Mahomes as many explosive targets as possible," Chad Reuter wrote in a recent NFL.com mock draft. "Worthy's elite speed makes him a top downfield threat as well as an obvious option for jet sweeps and quick screens. He’s a much-needed versatile threat for the Chiefs."

It would be an exciting acquisition for Kansas City, but it may not be the smartest route for general manager Brett Veach to take. Worthy fits the mold of what the Chiefs have sought in a wide receiver, but if they draft him, it should be because of his route-running, not because of his speed. Kansas City has made the mistake of chasing the ghost of Tyreek Hill in the past, and it hasn't worked out well.