Interesting article - So it would seem our eyes do not deceive us - Tyreek Hill is the fastest player in the NFL. The cool think is that with the Next Gen Stats program, there are tracking chips in player's shoulder pads and in the balls, so exact measurements are easy to obtain:
Video of that is on the site, and it's pretty damned funny.Since 2016, NGS has also provided data to the public on the fastest ballcarriers in a given season, as measured in the miles per hour of their maximum speed on certain plays. For the 2021 season, the highest mark was recorded by Indianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor, who hit 22.13 mph on a 67-yard touchdown run against the New England Patriots in Week 15. Given that he also posted the fourth- and fifth-highest speeds this season, Taylor should be considered the NFL’s fastest player, right?
Not so fast.
If consistency of accomplishment counts for anything, Hill still stands above the pack. That 64-yard touchdown gave him 14 plays this season on which he hit 20 mph or more while carrying the ball, at least six more than any other NFL player, per NGS. Hill’s 12 such plays last season were also the most in the league, and the 24 times he topped 20 mph during the 2018 and 2019 seasons were 10 more than the next player — New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley — on NGS’s list for that span.
In the 2016 season, Hill notched the fastest speed NGS has yet recorded for a ballcarrier when he hit 23.24 mph on a kickoff return. San Francisco 49ers running back Raheem Mostert, who suffered a season-ending knee injury in Week 1 this season, posted a second-best speed of 23.09 in 2020, and Hill also holds the third spot with a time of 22.77 mph in another 2016 game.
Then there are the speeds Hill has reached when he didn’t have the ball, most notably on a pair of long touchdowns in 2019 by then-Kansas City running back Damien Williams. On both occasions, Williams broke free and sprinted away from defenders, only for Hill to chase him down with top speeds of 22.81 and 22.64 mph. On one of those plays, Williams cracked the NGS top 20 for that season by hitting 21.33 while going 84 yards. The other play, a 91-yard scoring run against the Minnesota Vikings, caused some amusement when Hill easily beat Williams to the end zone despite being approximately five yards behind his teammate with 60 yards to go.
So, I don't have much of a dog in the hunt, I'll be fine with any of the teams, but I think the Super Bowl will be Rams and Chiefs. I've watch every playoff game in full, and I think they've played the best.
But the Super Bowl, SHOULD be the Bills and Chiefs, as Buffalo was great in the playoffs.
