This writer, whom I'm not blaming for his misconception in any way, stated, and this is paraphrased, that the 49ers have plenty of possession receivers, now they need a deep threat or burner. So my response to that is what it has been to the thousands of fans nationwide that continue to amaze me with their ignorance regarding true speed. Terrell Owens is our deep threat and our burner! Owens, who has ran the 40 in as little as a blazing 4.38, and never fails to crack 4.45, has all of the speed we need and is one of the best, if not the best, deep threat receivers in football. Ever since the fastest receiver in the NFL, Joey Galloway, went down with a torn ACL, and didn't come back quite as fast, Owens, I believe, has held the title of most deadly deep threat. His big, strong, blazingly fast frame coasts down the field and Owens turns into a man-among-boys.

However, so many fans do not realize just how fast Owens is. Nor do they realize which players really are fast and which are not. For instance, many of these receivers, when they think "burner," which means, in simplist terms, "REALLY FAST," think of the Ram receivers. Then I ask them to name which Ram receiver they think is fastest, and they say Torry Holt, Isaac Bruce, Az-Zahir Hakim. Usually, I respond by blowing a gasket and telling them how not one of those guys is truly "fast" at all! However, this time, I thought I'd just lay it all out here right now for the purpose of granting our 49er receivers the credit in the speed department they deserve. THE RAM RECEIVERS ARE NOT FAST.

Isaac Bruce, often thought of as the leader of the pack, the go-to guy of the team, has proven mediocre speed. Says NFL scout and well-respected expert Joel Buesbaum, "Isaac Bruce is NOT A BURNER, but he is very quick in and out of his breaks and has an uncanny knack for avoiding the direct hit." Bruce, according to an article printed in the STL Post Dispatch during the time at which Peter Warrick came out and had a disappointing 40 time in the mid 4.5s, ran a 4.53 at the combine. Since then, articles such as one written by ESPN's John Clayton, have quoted former Rams WR coach and current Chiefs' offensive coordinator Al Saunders as saying that Bruce is a 4.5 guy. 4.5, by the way, is average NFL wideout speed. Hardly the time of a burner!

Then we look at Torry Holt. According to the now-defunct Ultimate Sports magazine, Holt ran a 4.49 at the combine, and his best time was 4.45. That is GOOD, not great speed, GOOD. So where is all of this phenomenal speed we're talking about? Az-Zahkir Hakim? Well, according to Saunders, Hakim and Holt both are consistent high 4.4 guys.

So there we have it-the Ram receivers, even collectively as a group, are not that fast. Infact, they rank somewhere down around 8th or 9th in the league (just a guess). The 49ers, with the blazing speed of Terrell Owens, along with the other receivers who have good speed in their stems such as Tai Streets and Vinny Sutherland, likely rank near the top of the NFL in terms of a WR corps' collective speed.

Now, yeah yeah YEAH, you can argue that the Rams' receivers play faster than their 40 times. I can't prove that they don't anymore than you can that they have great "football speed." However, it's mostly a matter of perception. And can you possibly tell me that the 49ers receivers, who run, with the exception of course of the speed disabled J.J Stokes (no offense to my man J.J), EXCEPTIONAL 40 times, play slower? Just try telling that to Terrell Owens when he's going half throttle down the sidelines and coasting past Ray Buchanon for his 3rd deep TD of the game! No coach is going to argue that Owens doesn't play to his 4.3-4.4 40 times.

So there you have it. There is PLENTIFUL speed in the 49ers' receiving corps. There is no need for this alleged "burner" or "deep threat" or "speed receiver." Infact, the 49ers have probably NEVER Had a receiver faster than Terrell Owens. I'm trying to think...most of the guys we had were fluid and deceptive, not fast. From R.C Owens and Billy Wilson to Dwight Clark and Freddie Soloman to Jerry Rice and John Taylor, the 49ers have never had a true burner. Perhaps with the exception of a scarcely-used 3rd or 4th guy, but who cares? We have that guy now, Cedrick Wilson!