Vikings Draft Targets: Khalil Mack Ran a 4.45 Forty at His Pro Day

Feb 22, 2014; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Buffalo linebacker Khalil Mack speaks at the NFL Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Pat Lovell-USA TODAY Sports

The combine may be over but the measurables are still being measured. One highly-touted draft pick may have pushed his stock even higher with his pro day performance.

People already knew Khalil Mack was fast, but on Monday he showed just how fast. Per Adam Schefter, one scout on-hand to watch Mack work clocked the Buffalo linebacker at 4.45 in the forty.

That’s an improvement of .20 seconds on his combine 40 time of 4.65. The 4.45 time beats any of the linebacker 40 yard dashes run at the combine.

Though the new forty time is impressive, it’s hard to really say what effect, if any, this will have on Mack’s draft stock. Teams already knew Mack was a physical specimen, a great combination of speed and strength who has the potential to be a devastating edge player at the next level.

They already watched tons of tape on Mack, including his Incredible Hulk pass rushing performance against Ohio State in 2013.

In short, teams already knew Mack was a monster. He was already projected as a potential top 5 pick.

Clearly, Mack wanted to push that stock just a notch higher by running again at his pro day. He was obviously not satisfied with the time he posted at the combine and wanted to show he could run faster.

So is he now a potential #1 overall pick after goosing his forty time by two tenths of a second? Or was he that already?

He was already probably not going to be on the board at #8 for the defense-needy Vikings to draft. His eye-popping measurables have only cemented that.

Draftniks can debate the value of this new piece of data, and believe me, they will. A lot. On Twitter. With occasional bursts of swearing.

All I know is, Khalil Mack is fast and I wouldn’t mind having him playing in purple, but that’s almost certainly not going to happen.

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