Long before Jarvis Landry became one of the NFL’s most reliable pass catchers, he arrived at the 2014 NFL Combine carrying a concern that followed him throughout the pre-draft process. Despite a productive career at LSU, questions about his speed and athleticism continued to shadow him as scouts evaluated every drill and every measurement. Those concerns eventually led Landry to accept praise from Hall of Fame receiver Michael Irvin while knowing he wasn’t being completely honest.

“Michael Irvin even came up to me and was like, ‘I love your toughness. It’s these LSU receivers. They’re out here tough, hamstring hurt, and he’s still catching balls out here with one hand, man.’” Landry said on his 4th And South podcast.

” And it broke my heart because I’m like, ‘Man, if this man only knew that I’m faking this.’ Plus, I felt like this was the part where I could get the chance to show people, ‘Bro, I can really run routes.’ My speed running routes is different than running the 40.”

The 33-year-old felt compelled to make that decision because he was struggling to post an elite 40-yard dash time in Indianapolis. Fearing that a poor showing would hurt his draft stock, his then-agent, Ian Grutman, advised him to fake a hamstring injury and use it as an explanation for a disappointing result.

“I thought I was flying, bro. Man, I called my agent. I said, ‘Man, what was it? That had to be like a 4.45 at least, man.’ He said, ‘Hey, Juice, pretend like you pulled your hamstring,’” Landry added. “I had to still do the whole thing, like I was about to run, and then I had to say, I’m not running my next rep. And then we get into this field position stuff, and I got to like fake like I pull my hamstrings.”

With this fake hamstring injury, Jarvis Landry recorded a 4.77-second 40-yard dash, a 28.5-inch vertical jump, and 12 bench press repetitions at the 2014 NFL Scouting Combine. He also measured 31.75-inch arms and notably large 10.25-inch hands.

The workout was widely viewed as one of the most disappointing performances by any top receiver prospect in that draft class. Landry’s 40-yard dash and broad jump ranked last among wide receivers at the combine, while his vertical jump ranked near the bottom of the group. Afterward, many draft analysts who once viewed him as a potential first-round pick began projecting him into Day 2.

But Jarvis Landry didn’t allow his poor athleticism to hinder his performance in the league and broke out with 84 receptions for 758 receiving yards and five touchdowns in his rookie season. He also broke the Dolphins’ record for the most catches by a rookie and quickly established himself as one of the best wideouts in the league.

Then, throughout his career, Landry recorded 713 catches for 7,870 yards with 44 touchdowns while making five consecutive Pro Bowls from 2015 through 2019. In these nine seasons, he suited up for the Dolphins, the Cleveland Browns, and the New Orleans Saints.

The criticism surrounding his pre-draft testing never completely left him. Instead, it became fuel. Years later, Landry admitted that falling further than expected in the draft gave him an edge that stayed with him throughout his career.

As the LSU product continued to put up big numbers throughout his career, he consistently found support from Michael Irvin, as the Dallas Cowboys legend continued to back him despite other media analysts questioning his abilities. Furthermore, the playmaker compared Landry and his receiving partner in Cleveland, Odell Beckham Jr., to NBA legends and former Miami Heat teammates LeBron James and Dwyane Wade, creating a massive stir in NFL media.

When Michael Irvin compared Landry and OBJ to “LeBron and D-Wade”

Back in 2019, the Cleveland Browns pursued Super Bowl contention by bringing the successful LSU duo of Jarvis Landry and Odell Beckham Jr. as receiving weapons for former No. 1 overall pick Baker Mayfield. Landry and Beckham Jr. were the first receiving tandem in LSU history to each eclipse 1,000 receiving yards in a season, and the Browns hoped they could replicate that success in Cleveland.

With this sudden excitement engulfing the league, Michael Irvin took the hype to the next level by comparing the Browns pairing to LeBron James and Dwayne Wade, citing their previous connection as the biggest reason for this comparison.

“It worked so well with the boys down in Miami with LeBron and D-Wade because they were ‘boys’ prior to that union,” Irvin said on ESPN’s First Take.

As this comparison was met with immediate criticism and doubt from Irvin’s co-host, Stephen A. Smith, the Playmaker referred to Jarvis Landry’s efforts from the Combine, where he seemingly dealt with a hamstring injury, but still put up a decent effort.

“That’s the kind of dude he is,” Irvin added. “He had heart down in his toes!”

What Landry lacked in athleticism, he more than made up for on the field, as highlighted by his career numbers. And Michael Irvin, who unknowingly praised his toughness that day in Indianapolis, continued believing in him. Five Pro Bowls and nearly 8,000 receiving yards later, Irvin’s faith was justified all along.