Last week, NFL Network analyst Bucky Brooks emphasized the need for Florida CB Teez Tabor to improve upon his 4.62-second 40-yard dash at the Gators' pro day workout on Tuesday. Unfortunately for Tabor, it appears he did just the opposite.
NFL.com analyst Daniel Jeremiah said a 4.75 clocking was the fastest unofficial time he received from NFL scouts present at Tabor's workout.
Tabor ran a 4.62 at the NFL Scouting Combine earlier this month, prompting questions about whether he belongs in the first-round conversation for the 2017 NFL Draft. A day earlier, Tabor called himself not only the best cornerback in the draft, but its best overall player.
If he is, it doesn't look like his draft stock will reflect it.
"The magic number for corners is 4.60. Anything above that, and the alarm goes off," Jeremiah said. "That could have a major impact. People can say the 40 is overrated, but the one position where it matters most is corner. Teams will take his best time, which was at the combine -- his magnet on everybody's board will say 4.62 -- but this was a big opportunity to help himself, and he didn't."
A slow 40-yard dash time is the last thing any cornerback prospect needs, but it could be especially damaging for Tabor in this particular draft because the talent pool at the position is considered to be very strong. Tabor has fallen out of NFL Network draft expert Mike Mayock's top-five rankings at the position, which currently include Ohio State's Marshon Lattimore, Alabama's Marlon Humphrey, Washington's Kevin King, Ohio State's Gareon Conley and UCLA's Fabian Moreau.
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