Mike likes Mekhi: Las Vegas GM praises Louisville OT Becton

Predictably, Alabama receiver Henry Ruggs III was the fastest player at the Combine. His 4.27-second 40-yard dash time tied him with two others for fastest in Combine history.

Crazy fast, right? It’s even crazier when you find out Ruggs was upset by his 40 time.

“I didn’t really look for attention, it was just — they told us to come up here and do that stuff and I just did what I had to do, and it just so happened I came out with those numbers,” Ruggs said, via 24/7’s BamaOnline. “I actually was kind of upset after I ran because I didn’t feel like I had a good start, but after they told me the numbers I was like … I still feel like I can do better.”

Henry Ruggs recorded a 4.27 in the 40 at the NFL combine yesterday. Here he is showing his athleticism in high school. (video via @hudl, JG Images, @__RUGGS) pic.twitter.com/WxK6slUuwA

— Hoopmixtape.com (@Hoopmixtape) February 28, 2020

So how can a general manager can come away more impressed with the 40-time of a player who didn’t even crack a sub-5.0?

Let Mike Mayock explain:

“I believe him running 5.1 is more impressive than what the wideout from Alabama ran,” Mayock said during the Combine broadcast (which you can watch here).

The “him” Mayock is referring to is Mekhi Becton, who ran an official 5.1 40 after measuring 6-foot-7, 364 pounds – which is the fastest time ever for a player who is 350 pounds or more.

How impressive was it? To put Becton’s time in perspective, it was nearly one-tenth of a second faster than the previous high-mark, set in 2014 by former Tennessee DT Daniel McCullers (who, by the way, also weighed 12 pounds less at the Combine than Becton did).

The way Mike Mayock looks at Tom Cable after 364-pound OT Mekhi Becton ran a 5.11 40 is priceless. pic.twitter.com/5xgSDpp16G

— Levi Damien (@LeviDamien) February 28, 2020

While the praise just keeps coming for the massive Louisville tackle, not everyone is on the Becton bandwagon.

Pro Football Focus listed him as one of the prospects it doesn’t like as much as scouts and the media. Becton’s average first two seasons combined with a good-but-not-elite final season is already reasons for concern, but “… when you dive into how much of that was protected by the Cardinals’ scheme, the concern grows larger.”

In only 73 true pass sets (standard QB dropbacks), Becton still allowed eight pressures, which PFF says is a concerning rate.

“Everyone is falling in love with his physical tools, and rightfully so, but you shouldn’t be drafting based on potential in the first round, especially in the top-five. In our eyes, there are four better offensive tackle prospects in this class,” PFF’s Anthony Treash writes.

Becton is currently the No. 15 overall prospect in the latest Fanspeak-Steve big board, while Ruggs is the No. 12-rated prospect.