So, About That Taylor Mays 40 Time...

Yesterday, the internets went crazy for the unofficial 40 time of 4.24 posted by USC safety Taylor Mays at the combine. It tied Chris Johnson for the fastest 40 time ever run at the combine. But then the official times came in, and it turned out that Mays actually ran a 4.43, which is still respectable and ranked amongst the top 40 times recorded. But it's not exactly alien-like, as we called it.

There's a slight problem with that "official" time, however: NFL Network's "simulcam" technology shows that Mays finished ahead of Trindon Holliday, who is listed as having run a 4.34:

The man just ahead of Mays is Jacoby Ford, who posted the fastest official 40 time of 4.28. So, if "simulcam" is to be trusted, it appears as if Mays ran about a 4.3 -- right between the 4.34 of Holliday and the 4.28 of Ford.

So, what's the big deal? Well, there isn't one, really. But it's not inconceivable that the difference between a 4.43 40 and a 4.3 40 could cost a player spots in the draft, which equals buckets of money down the drain thanks to a faulty stopwatch.