Rhamondre Stevenson is a running back that played his college football at Oklahoma University. Stevenson was selected 120th overall at the 2021 NFL draft.
At six feet tall and weighing two hundred and forty-six pounds some football fans were worried about Stevenson’s speed. This has many wondering what is Rhamondre Stevenson’s 40 time.
Rhamondre Stevenson ran an unofficial 40 time of 4.63 seconds at the Oklahoma Sooners pro day. Stevenson was unable to record an official 40 time because the 2021 NFL combine was cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
It is important to understand the difference between official and unofficial 40 times. Official times are recorded using electronic timing which makes them more accurate. Unofficial 40 times are primarily recorded using a stopwatch.
Other players in the 2021 draft such as Kyle Pitts, Rondale Moore, Rashod Bateman were also unable to record official 40 times.
Pre Draft Strengths And Weaknesses
Like any other prospect coming into the NFL Rhamondre Stevenson had several strengths and weaknesses according to scouts and analysts.
Now that he has spent some time in the NFL it’s time to check out what scouts had to say about this running back before entering the league.
Carries first tackle try with him as he falls forward
One of the biggest positives about Stevenson as a prospect was that he was almost always able to take the first tackler with him in college. Stevenson’s size and strength allowed him to drag defenders with him always making sure he fell forward.
Once in the NFL, this trait remained true, almost all of Stevenson’s runs ended with him falling forward for a few extra yards.
This resulted in Stevenson picking up a large number of first downs when only a few yards were needed. All in all, Stevenson earned 76.8 percent of his yards after contact in his rookie season.
Hands soft enough to work out of the backfield
Another positive about Rhamondre Stevenson as a prospect was his ability to catch the ball out of the backfield. In college, he displayed that he had good hands for a running back and was able to consistently catch the ball.
In the NFL Stevenson did not get many opportunities in this role to show off his talent. Throughout his rookie season, he was only able to bring in fourteen catches, though he was able to take these catches for a total of one hundred and twenty-three yards.
Requires legitimate run support from cornerbacks to slow him
Due to Stevenson’s size and stature, he requires that cornerbacks are legitimate tacklers in order to bring him down one on one. If Stevenson is able to get to the outside the defense is going to need a sure tackler at cornerback to bring him down.
In the NFL Stevenson has run through many tacklers from smaller less-skilled players. A player that primarily excels in pass coverage will likely struggle to bring down a back of this size.
Loses forcefulness when feet are slowed or he’s spilled outside
One of the knocks against Stevenson as he entered the draft was that he loses his physicality once he is slowed down or outside the tackle box.
Throughout his first year in the NFL this did not seem to be true. Stevenson often took on multiple tacklers and continued to push the pile forward despite the initial contact slowing him.
Stevenson also laid out many hits on defenders once getting outside of the formation. All in all this pre-draft take was fairly inaccurate.
