![]() Having electronic timing (not hand-timed with a stopwatch) is a good start, but different equipment usually means different protocols of how an athlete is timed. Like the NFL combine, each approach is unique in protocol and equipment. Based on the combine data one would ask the obvious question, are the times accurate? The answer is complicated. They measure the first 10m, showing they understand the value of early acceleration, the period from 0-5 or 0-10 meters. ![]() I love the fact the MLS Combine tested the 30m sprint. How Fast can MLS players Accelerate? Figure 2: Acceleration of elite soccer athletes. New research is starting to emerge, and players are tested longer than 30m to get both acceleration and top speed conveniently. Since most athletes hit top speed from the 30-40 sprint, and elite sprinters hit top speed typically between 50-60 meters and decelerate slowly after. When athletes are being tracked on video or with GPS tools, the data is estimating how fast they are running, but timing systems like the Freelap Pro Coach are the gold standard. Figure 1: Maximum speed of elite soccer athletes.Īs you can see in the chart above, the speed of the players (taken from ESPN) is impressive, and for convenience we provided a table to help coaches understand splits and speed. Regardless, elite soccer does capture maximal speed of plays, and you can see how they compare to the World’s Fastest Man, Usain Bolt. Since most sport is acceleration, very few times we can see plays that are long enough distance and time to hit maximal velocity. For example look at the Super Bowl, the replay of the offensive attack of Tom Brady was shown as snap to pass in a chronometer in the top left of the screen. Basketball, baseball, American football, and hockey don’t have a long history of showing top speed in plays, and if they do they show times from past combines or how little time was taken to perform a play. In the United States, the 40 yard dash being such an important indication to many, most Americans don’t know what the maximal speed an athlete reaches in sport. In the early article on Usain Bolt, the question many search on the internet is how fast the Jamaican can run the 40 yard dash, a test of acceleration. Speed is a very general measurement, and the distance an athlete is running determines how fast one can be, and how they are getting there. The NFL and Elite Soccer look at speed differently, and science and media report how fast athletes are based on different measurements. However, few teams are doing it because they are scared of injuries or don’t have confidence in the training program. Retesting speed is the most effective way to gauge what is happening to a player besides fitness testing. For both the NFL and elite soccer to keep the best players healthy and develop more athletes, it’s a good idea to test from youth to retirement, provided a wise perspective is included. Is the guy great in spite of his speed but can get better? Is the athlete untapped athletically because they compete year round? What are the cause and effect of the weight room and other influences to performance if one isn’t testing at least year to year? Testing every month at least shows some trend, but most stop testing after the player reaches a high level. True, the fastest guys are not always the best players, but if the players are performing at a specific speed shouldn’t we at least maintain their abilities? What is so strange is that the same people that value speed when selecting players seem to forget retesting or even development. The myth that the combine is useless when Tom Brady is shown on video or the fact that Jerry Rice ran a 4.6 is always brought up. Some criticisms of the NFL and MLS combine have used poor arguments against testing players speed and power, and they are worth bringing up. Why the Combine is Vital to Player Development This article will review two points that everyone should know: that testing is important, and you must be able to understand the relationships and limits of jumping and sprinting. Yet, after the combines players seem never to get tested again making me wonder if the numbers are so valuable shouldn’t teams test again to see if they are getting better, staying the same, or getting worse. Geoff Schwartz, NFL LinemanĮvery winter for one month, the combines for the National Football League and Major League Soccer draw a huge amount of attention in the media for what is simply a day of performance testing. A five-yard burst, a 10-yard burst, lateral quickness. It’s not a great representation of what offensive linemen need to do. I ran a 40 at the Combine and I haven’t run a 40 since.
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