“40 yards of gold” draws estimated crowd of 2,000 to 3,000

Gumbo

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Mar 19, 2019
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Saturday night’s inaugural 40-yard dash contest took place in a venue that holds in the range of 20,000 for events like hockey and arena football. According to David Furones of the South Florida Sun Sentinel, somewhere between 2,000 and 3,000 fans attended the bracket-style footrace event.

Videos of the races show that people were indeed there, but it’s hard to see how many of the seats were empty, due to the lighting. An official attendance number (along with the number of tickets actually purchased by the public) had not yet been released.

Also not released: Information regarding the performance of the pay-per-view option, along with the raw 40-yard dash times run by the competitors. Instead, only the gap between winner and loser of each heat was disclosed.

“Watch what happens next year,” host Chad Johnson said. “We’re going to have to turn guys away.”

This year, several potential participants voluntarily turned themselves away. As previously mentioned, Saints receiver Ted Ginn didn’t show up. Apparently, Washington defensive back Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie also no-showed.

A source with knowledge of the situation told PFT that at least four decided not to run because the presence of eventual winner Marquise Goodwin (pictured) resulted in a “risk vs. reward [that] didn’t add up.” Titans safety Kevin Byard, Giants receiver Corey Coleman, and Cardinals safety Budda Baker originally were in, and then they were out after Goodwin got in. Colts safety Malik Hooker also passed on a chance to participate, due to Goodwin’s addition to the field.

Sprinting entails a specific and defined risk — any injury suffered while running away from official team activities could result in placement on the non-football injury list. A season-ending injury could forfeit the player’s full salary for the year, and possibly set up an attempt to recover a portion of any unearned signing bonus.

While no one apparently was injured in the inaugural event (Jets receiver Robby Anderson quit after one race, but is fine), someone eventually will pull a hamstring, or worse, if the event becomes an annual tradition.

Whether it becomes an annual tradition remains to be seen.
 
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