INDIANAPOLIS -- I've come to the decision that on Sunday, I'm not going to run.

Making the Leap

ESPN.com is following wide receiver Ashley Lelie on his journey from the University of Hawaii to the NFL. Lelie is writing a weekly diary, and we will file regular reports on the steps a prospect takes in preparation for the NFL draft on April 20. Send in your questions and Lelie will answer a few every week. Ashley answers: Feb. 21 | Feb. 28 Feb. 14: Meet Lelie | Diary Feb. 21: Combine prep | Diary Feb. 28: Workout wonders | Diary March 1: Diary

When I woke up Saturday morning, the soreness was still lingering in my hamstring and I decided that it wasn't worth the risk. Even though I've been waiting for Sunday's 40-yard dash for some two months now, it's just not worth it. My hamstring is 80 percent. Chances are I could still go out there and post a great time, but there's just as much a chance that I could further injure my hammy. So I'm out.

Instead of running the 40 or participating in any of the other drills, I'm going to sit in the stands and watch the other receivers run. I've become close friends with some of these guys over the past few months and even though we're competing for the same draft picks, I want to see them do well.

As I see it, we're not competing against each other, but against ourselves. So I'll be there in the stands, cheering for guys like Antonio Bryant, Antwaan Randle El and Reche Caldwell.

With that, I'd be lying if I said it won't be hard to watch. Speed is my game. And I was excited about getting out there, running some routes and catching some balls. I can't tell you how disappointed I am. This is what I've waited for and I won't be there. But I'll just have to get over it.

I know that there are probably a lot of people who think that I'm faking it. That my hamstring really isn't that big of a deal and that I'm just dodging the events like some of the big-name guys do. I understand that, I guess. It's just a natural reaction. But that's not the case.

I want to make sure that I'm going to be 100 percent for my pro day next month. And if I run here and tear something or cause a serious injury, it could ruin everything.

I met with a few more teams today, including the Chiefs and Ravens. My agent thinks that I can still be a Top 10 pick, so the meeting with the Chiefs, who have pick No. 8 and need a receiver, was a big one. I thought it went well. At this point, I've met with so many teams and heard the same questions so many times, it's becoming old hat.

A couple teams, like Atlanta and Oakland, asked me specific football questions. They wanted to know what I would do on specific plays, like if I was supposed to run a three step slant, but Charles Woodson was cutting off the inside cut. Don't ask me how I answered those questions because I don't know.

The interviews, believe it or not, were the easy part today. The hard part was the physicals. I'll bet you 100 doctors checked me over. There were about 15-20 doctors at six stations. And they check everything. One guy checked my knees, one guy my shoulder, another guy my ankles. It was like I was a car and one guy was checking the engine while somebody else checked the brakes.

And boy are they thorough. I haven't had any serious injuries in my football career, but I mentioned that I underwent a knee bruise and had to have fluid drained from my knee last year and all of the sudden, these guys want to bend this, flex that, and run an MRI. I'm like, 'Hell no. That takes an extra 45 minutes. Are you kidding me? It was just a minor draining. I played the next quarter.'

Part of the physical was getting your height and weight measured. I checked in at 6-foot-2 ¾ and 197 pounds. Man, that pissed me off. I wanted to be 6-3 and 205 pounds. At the Senior Bowl, they measured me at 6-3 ¼, so I don't know how they lost a ½ inch. As for the weight, I weighed 205 a week ago, but weighed 201 when I left to come up here. I thought I'd still be above 200 when they weighed me, but the food down here has been so terrible and we haven't had any time to eat.

Last night, I called for room service at 11:45 and they told me it closed at 12:00. It was like, 'It's not 12 yet.' But they were closed. So that was that. I guess it explains why I've lost a few pounds.

As for what the lighter weight and not running the 40 will do to my draft stock, I'm really not worried about it. As long as I perform well on my pro day, none of this stuff will matter. Now, that day just becomes all the more important.