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Tribune-Review columnist Joe Starkey penned a great piece on rookie kick returner Reggie Dunn for Sunday's edition. In that, Dunn told him he ran a 4.29 40-yard-dash for the Steelers coaches "the other day."
As Starkey says, "anything below 4.3 is pretty sick."
Throwing speed way out of the way (which is hard to do), the real question Dunn needs to answer is how high his arc is as a receiver. Is this a player the Steelers can see getting on the field in a year or two? Even this year?
Odds aren't good, considering a team's need for depth and versatility, especially at wide receiver. Recent kickoff rules have resulted in scores of touchbacks, meaning, he'd be a threat, and little else, on kickoffs - where his long speed is best utilized.
But speed is speed, and a weapon is a weapon. There are maybe five players in the entire NFL who can run as fast as he can, and a big kick return is just as valuable to an offense as a 40-yard completion.
Especially when those 40 yards are covered in a shade over four seconds.