Notre Dame’s Quenton Nelson skips 40-yard dash with reported tweaked hamstring

Indianapolis — Scouts at the NFL Combine will not get the full Nelson.

Quenton Nelson, the Notre Dame guard who many believe is not only the top interior lineman in this draft class but a potential top-5 pick, did not participate in the 40-yard dash during drills on Friday. According to the NFL Network, Nelson tweaked his hamstring while warming up for the straight-line sprint and decided to sit it out rather than risk further injury.

Nelson, who already impressed NFL teams on Thursday with 35 reps in the bench press, did participate in other drills on Friday. He posted a 26.5-inch vertical.

Nelson wasn’t the only Golden Domer to skip the 40. Also according to NFL Network, offensive tackle Mike McGlinchey passed on the drill after tweaking his hamstring a few weeks ago. He was expected to perform in other drills, however.

The lack of the traditional speed measurement is unlikely to hinder the evaluation of either player, unless teams want their offensive linemen to run go routes on a regular basis.

One lineman whose value may be impacted, though, is Ohio State’s Billy Price who suffered a partially-torn pectoral during the bench press drills on Thursday. Price spoke to the media on Friday and called it an “incomplete” tear and a minor injury.

“I’m not worried about this at all,” he said. “This is something where I’m gonna come back stronger. You’re gonna really have to put a bullet between us Ohio State guys’ eyes to put us down. So I’m looking to get back out there and whatever team ends up selecting me, we’re going to be 100 percent going into it.”

Price is a player many believe the Giants have had an eye on at the top of the second round.

By Tom Rock

tom.rock@newsday.com@TomRock_Newsday

Tom Rock began covering sports for Newsday in 1996 and became its NFL columnist in 2022. He previously was Newsday's Giants beat writer beginning in 2008.