2022 NFL Scouting Combine: Breece Hall makes a big statement during running back drills

The running backs dazzled on the field on Friday night, with 10 of them running under 4.50, it was another evening in which a skill-position was a lot faster than we expected.

I will say — most of these backs didn’t look as fast on film as they ran in Indianapolis, but the numbers are the numbers, and Iowa State’s Breece Hall had himself the most explosive workout of anyone at his position.

Notable RB workouts

RB winners

Breece Hall, Iowa State: Hall is going to be the first running back off the board in April. He cemented his place as the consensus RB1 with his workout on Friday night. The 4.39 time with a 40-inch vertical was tremendous. 

Ken Walker, Michigan State: Walker will be the RB1 on some team’s boards. His 2021 season at Michigan State was that good. And now we know he has serious juice down the field with the ball in his hands. 

Pierre Strong, South Dakota State: To run 4.37 with a 36-inch vertical announced to everyone that Strong isn’t just FCS fast. He’ll run away from some defensive backs in the NFL.  

Zamir White, Georgia: The former huge recruit who battled through two ACL tears fought all the way back to run 4.40 with an explosive 10-foot, eight-inch broad jump. White looked fully recovered from his injuries in 2021 and could sneak his way into the first five running backs off the board. 

D’Vonte Price, Florida International: Price was 198 pounds at the Senior Bowl, bulked up to 210 and still ran 4.38. Impressive. He’s tall for a running back and certainly runs high. But the downfield speed is certainly there. 

RB losers

Kyren Williams, Notre Dame: Williams was one of my favorite backs in this class, a universally well-liked prospect because of his lateral juice and receiving capabilities. His 4.65 official time in the 40 is simply very slow for a back that wasn’t even 200 pounds. 

Jerrion Ealy, Ole Miss: The dynamic Rebels runner was billed as a speed weapon, hitting many big plays in college. On the track in Indy, the 4.52 was a little disappointing, and looks slower compared to his 2022 running back contemporaries.

Isaiah Spiller, Texas A&M: One of the premier workhorse backs in this class, Spiller is a combine loser because he didn’t run and saw the limelight taken from him by Hall’s awesome performance. Spiller’s 30-inch vertical and nine-foot, six-inch broad jump weren’t great either.