EUGENE — Tez Johnson is known for his speed in the open field, which is why his time in the 40-yard dash at the NFL combine was so surprising.
The 5-foot-9 7/8 and 154 pound receiver ran in 4.51 seconds, which was 29th out of 39 receivers to run in Indianapolis and does not bode well for a player his size. Johnson elected not to run the 40 during Oregon’s pro day on Tuesday and explained his decision.
“You can watch my tape and see can’t nobody catch me,” Johnson said. “I don’t think the 40 really defines you as a football player. It just shows that you can run a fast time. For years all I’ve known is if you can run the fastest man in the 40, you’re not lasting in the league. You don’t see those guys too many — except Xavier Worthy, he’s the only one in it right now that can really blaze and run.”
Johnson does have a point.
For every Worthy, who broke the combine record in 2024 by running the 40 in 4.21 seconds, Chris Johnson, Riq Woolen and Marquis Goodwin, who ran sub 4.3-second 40 times and had lengthy NFL careers, there are also Kalon Barnes, Jerome Mathis, Dri Archer and Jacoby Ford, who had short tenures as pro.
Asked specifically how he felt about his 40 time, Johnson said, “That’s my time. I own up to it. When they say Tez Johnson 4.51, that’s what I ran.”
Johnson differs from some of those players not only in his 40 time but also his size, which compounds the issue over his slower straight line speed. He somewhat similar to former UAB receiver JJ Nelson (5-foot-10, 160 pounds), who spent five years in the league with the Arizona Cardinals and Oakland Raiders.
Johnson said he aims to play between 162-163 pounds in the NFL to “be where I can play at confidently and making sure that I can hold up.” He claims to have a top 30 visit scheduled with the Cleveland Browns for early next month.
Johnson’s other results in physical tests at the combine were much better, including the best time in the three-cone drill (6.65 seconds) among all players to run this year, a 10-foot-11 broad jump, fourth among 33 receivers to jump, and 4.15 seconds 20-yard shuttle.
He also reached a top speed of 22.17 miles per hour running a go route, fastest by any receiver at this year’s combine, according to NFL Next Gen Stats.
“It’s my game,” Johnson said. “When you watch me play on tape nobody can catch me or cover me. I guess the L drill, the 5-10-5 translates. Running routes it’s a different speed you have to use catching the ball in the air, tracking it. Being able to make sure all those things are crisp too. I wasn’t letting the 40 define who I was, go out there and do the other drills to the best of my ability for sure.”
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--James Crepea covers theOregon Ducks and Big Ten. Listen to theDucks Confidential podcast or subscribe to theDucks Roundup newsletter.