Noah Spence Proves He's Draft's Top Edge-Rusher Despite Poor 40 Time

Noah Spence came out of the Senior Bowl as everybody's favorite edge-rusher. His impressive practices and head-turning performance in the game itself left little doubt as to which of the pass-rushers had the best chance to make a living feasting on professional quarterbacks.

When Spence took Lucas Oil Field, anticipation was high. Could Spence come away from Indianapolis unquestionably ahead of the rest of the defensive linemen, just as he had in Mobile, Alabama?

Not quite.

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When it comes to the combine, the marquee drill is the 40-yard dash. A fast time trumps everything else, and a slow time overshadows everything else. Right or wrong, the number of seconds between launch and tape-break is the one everyone wants to know.

In a draft class full of pudgy offensive linemen, statuesque quarterbacks and tall, slow wide receivers, all anyone wanted to see in Indianapolis was an edge-rusher with wheels. Just one Von Miller, one Khalil Mack. Heck, just one Barkevious Mingo who could give the clipboard crowd something to drool over in the lonely days between the end of the combine and the start of free agency.

Spence set up at the starting line of the 40-yard dash, but didn't quite pull it off:

OK, so Spence and his 4.80 time got dusted by the Super Bowl MVP and a first-team All-Pro. There's no getting around it: The Eastern Kentucky Colonel, by way of Ohio State, is not a generational pass-rushing prospect.

Spence probably won't rack up 19 sacks in two years or post a record-breaking plus-84 Pro Football Focus grade in his second year like Mack did. And he may never post double-digit sacks while shutting down slot receivers in man coverage like Miller does.

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But you know what? That's OK. Noah Spence doesn't have to be a surefire Hall of Famer to make nearly every NFL team better. He doesn't have to blow up every single drill to be taken in the first round, and he doesn't have to run a sub-4.6 40-yard dash to be the best edge-rusher in this draft.

Spence has a lot of question marks around him, namely off-field questions strong enough to force Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer to kick him off the team. But after cutting a pedestrian 4.80-second 40-yard dash time, Spence went on to display the tools that made him a valued part of Meyer's defense—and, not to put too fine a point on it, show up former Buckeye teammate Joey Bosa.

Bosa disappointed in the 40-yard dash, running a 4.86, and also finished behind Spence in vertical jump and broad jump.

Further, Bosa slipped and fell in the bag drill. As former Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive end Stephen G. White wrote for SB Nation, Bosa's tape reveals a pronounced struggle to bend and turn the corner while pass-rushing. His failure in the bag drill reinforces a weakness shown on tape.

Though Bosa (who measured in at 6'6", 275 pounds) is significantly larger than Spence (6'2", 254 pounds), teams at the top of the draft looking for a quick fix to their pass rush will have to reckon with Bosa simply not being able to beat NFL tackles off the edge the way Spence can. Teams that run a 3-4 defense may see J.J. Watt-type potential in Bosa, but Spence can hassle quarterbacks from wherever he lines up.

Bleacher Report's NFL draft lead writer, Matt Miller, cautioned against reading too much into Spence's slower 40-yard dash:

Many other evaluators saw Spence's overall athleticism on display, and Spence himself showed the kind of development and passion for the game you love to see from a prospect as gifted as he is.

Overall, teams will have to decide for themselves whether to take a chance on Spence, whose substance abuse issues at Ohio State uncomfortably reflect those of last year's most intriguing pass-rusher, Randy Gregory (who is currently suspended for the first four games of the 2016 NFL season).

"I've grown from the situation," Spence said Friday during his combine media availability, per Alex Marvez of Fox Sports. "I've become a better person."

Whether he's truly turned that corner is an open question. But there shouldn't be any question, despite his less-than-amazing 40 time, that Spence is as good an edge-rushing prospect as any NFL team will be able to find in this draft.