In 2008, Football Outsiders introduced Speed Score, a metric that projected the likelihood of success for running back prospects available in the NFL draft. Speed Score found a correlation between NFL success and the prospect's score on the 40-yard dash after adjusting for the prospect's weight. In short, players who tested as big and fast at the NFL combine ultimately found more success than players who tested as small and slow. Speed Score has had a number of hits, projecting success for players like Chris Johnson (who was considered a huge reach as a first-round pick at the time) and third-rounder turned All-Pro Jamaal Charles.
Introducing BackCAST
