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Introduction:
Cotter, Allison and Foradora 2
Our project will be exploring the correlation between the weight of a pro football player, and
their 40 yard dash time. We will gather data on 25 different NFL players from all positions. We
predict that if the weight of a NFL player increases, then their 40 yard dash time will increase
with a correlation of .878, or a strong, positive correlation. We will gather our information using
the internet and retrieving data others have collected. This project is a sample survey, or a study
Data Set:
The population is the entire set of individuals that are studied. The population for our project
would be all players in the NFL. The sample are the players of the population that we actually
collect data from. The sample for our project is the 25 athletes we researched to find their weight
and 40 yard dash time. A variable is any characteristic of an individual. The explanatory variable
is the weight of the player, and the response variable is the 40 yard dash time. The reason the
weight is the explanatory is because that if you gain weight, it is harder to run faster and requires
more muscle, but if you run a slower 40 time, there is no way to determine your weight. You
Gathering Data/Collection:
Cotter, Allison and Foradora 4
Excel:
There is one major outlier, which we know after looking back to be a quarterback.
Quarterbacks are among the slowest in the league because of their top priority to be good
passers. This is why they are not the heaviest, but their 40 yard dash time is so high.
Interpreting r and r2
direction and strength of a straight line relationship between two quantitative variables. This is
written as r. If r= .850, the correlation is positive meaning as the weight of the football player
increases, then the 40 yard dash time increases. The correlation of .850 means the correlation is
strong meaning the correlation is valid. Next, we defined Coefficient of determination as the
fraction of the variation in the values of y that is explained by the least squares regression of y on
x. Since r = .850, then r2 = .722 meaning any prediction has a 72.2% explained variation.
Cotter, Allison and Foradora 5
Prediction
The least squares regression line is the line that makes the sum of all the squares of the
vertical distance as small as possible . The equation for our least squares regression line is
Y = .005x + 3.419.
Predict the 40 yard dash time for a player weighing 240 lbs:
Y = .005x + 3.419
Y= 1.2 + 3.419
Y = 4.619
If the player weighs 240 pounds, then I predict that the 40 yard dash time will be 4.619 seconds
with a 72.2% explained variation. An actual player weighing 240 lbs had a 40 yard dash time of
Lurking Variables
Lurking variables are are variables that have an important effect on the relationship
among the variables in a study but is not one of the explanatory variables studied. Lurking
variables in this study could be the age of the players and the position they play. The player’s age
is an example of common response. If the player's age increases the weight tends to increase and
their speed tends to decrease. The position they play is also common response. Some positions
don't require someone to be as fast, so the don't train to increase their speed.
Cotter, Allison and Foradora 6
Conclusion
We predicted that if the weight of a NFL player increases, then their 40 yard dash time
will increase with a correlation of .878, or a strong, positive correlation. Our hypothesis was
correct with regard to the strength and direction, but our guess at the exact correlation was
slightly off, but that is expected.. Our actual correlation value is r = .850 which is a slightly
Works Cited:
Cotter, Allison and Foradora 7