- Chris Long (American football)
Infobox NFLactive
name=Chris Long
caption=
currentteam=St. Louis Rams
currentnumber=72
currentposition=Defensive end
|birthdate=birth date and age|1985|3|28
birthplace=Santa Monica, California
heightft=6
heightin=3
weight=263
debutyear=2008
debutteam= St. Louis Rams
college=Virginia
draftyear=2008
draftround=1
draftpick=2
pastteams=
*St. Louis Rams (2008-present)
status=Active
highlights=
* College awards and honors
statweek=3
statseason=2008
statlabel1=Tackles
statvalue1=13
statlabel2=Sacks
statvalue2=1.0
statlabel3=INTs
statvalue3=0
nfl=LON213256Christopher Howard Long (born
March 28 ,1985 in city-state|Santa Monica|California) is anAmerican football defensive end for theSt. Louis Rams of theNational Football League . He was drafted by the Rams second overall in the2008 NFL Draft . He playedcollege football at Virginia.Long is the son of former NFL defensive end and Hall of Famer
Howie Long .cite news | url = http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/24/sports/ncaafootball/24virginia.html | title = Chris Long Depends on Hard Work More Than Famous Name | first = Adam | last = Himmelsbach | date = 2007-11-24 | accessdate = 2008-06-19 | work =The New York Times | publisher =The New York Times Company ]Early years
Chris Long attended
St. Anne's-Belfield School in city-state|Charlottesville|Virginia.cite web | url = http://www.virginiasports.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=88799&SPID=10606&DB_OEM_ID=17800&ATCLID=1133501&Q_SEASON=2007 | title = Chris Long Biography | date = 2007-07-19 | accessdate = 2008-06-19 | work = VirginiaSports | publisher =University of Virginia ] As a senior in 2003 he was in on 91 tackles, 23 tackles for a loss, and 15 sacks helping his team to an undefeated record and the state private-school championship. “He was a big gangly kid who had yet to grow into his body,” said John Blake, the St. Anne’s-Belfield coach. “But he jumped in with both feet. When he played tackle, he would drive kids 10 or 15 yards down the field, like he was steering a car.”Long had the rare distinction of having his jersey retired at St. Anne's-Belfield School. He was given a 4-star ranking for college recruiting from
Rivals.com , a service that rated him the sixth-best defensive end in the prep ranks. [ [http://www.nfl.com/draft/profiles/chris-long?id=276 NFL.com] ] He played in the 2004U.S. Army All-American Bowl .Long also played
basketball ,lacrosse , andbaseball in high school. [ [http://www.stlouisrams.com/team/players/67526/ Chris Long Profile on St. Louis Rams website] ]College career
Long enrolled at the
University of Virginia in 2004 and sought a degree in sociology. He was a backup on the defensive line, but missed five games due to mononucleosis. Long ended the season with five tackles (two for a loss) and a sack.As a sophomore in 2005, Long averaged 3.8 tackles per game, leading all Virginia defensive linemen. He totaled 46 tackles, with 10 tackles for a loss and 2 sacks. His 26 quarterback pressures led his team. He also shared the team lead in pass break-ups with seven.
In 2006, Long earned second-team All-ACC honors and was voted team captain. While starting all games, Long recorded 57 tackles, 12 for a loss, and 4 sacks. His 4.8 tackles per game was fourth among ACC defensive lineman. He was also a finalist for the
Dudley Award , for the most outstanding player in the state ofVirginia and was an All-State selection.Following his 2007 senior season, Long was selected as a consensus First-team All-American. [cite news | url = http://kuathletics.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/121807aaa.html | title = Talib Officially Named Consensus All-America By NCAA | first = Kan | last = Lawrence | date = 2007-12-18 | accessdate = 2008-06-19 | work = KU Athletics | publisher = CBS College Sports Networks] His 14 sacks were third in the country with an average of 1.13 sacks per game. Long was fourth nationally in tackling by a defensive lineman, averaging 6.3 tackles per game. In addition, North Carolina head coach
Butch Davis , who coached against Long in North Carolina's ACC match-ups with Virginia, called Long one of the premier defensive lineman in the country. [ [http://www.stlouisrams.com/team/players/67526/ St. Louis Rams.com] ]Long entered the 2007 season on the watch lists for the
Outland Trophy ,Bronko Nagurski Trophy ,Bednarik Trophy ,Lombardi Trophy ,Hendricks Award and theLott Trophy . He finished the season as a finalist for the Lombardi, Lott, and Nagurski Trophys. OnDecember 5 ,2007 , Long won the 2007 Ted Hendricks Defensive End of the Year Award, given to the top defensive end in the nation. Long garnered more than 60 percent of the votes, the most ever for a winner in the history of the award.cite news | url = http://www.virginiasports.com/ViewArticle.dbml?&ATCLID=1346367&DB_OEM_ID=17800 | title = Long Wins Hendricks Award as Nation's Top DE | date = 2007-12-05 | accessdate = 2008-06-19 | work = VirginiaSports | publisher =University of Virginia ] Additionally, Long received a first-place vote and finished 10th in the 2007Heisman Trophy voting. [cite web | url = http://fantasysportsoutlook.com/2007/12/08/2007-heisman-voting/ | title = 2007 Heisman Voting | date = 2007-12-08 | accessdate = 2008-06-19 | publisher = Fantasy Sports Outlook]On
November 24 ,2007 , Long's #91 jersey was retired at UVA, making him the first player to have his jersey retired while he was still active.cite news | url = http://www.virginiasports.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=88791&SPID=10606&ATCLID=1326326&DB_OEM_ID=17800 | title = Virginia Honors Tiki Barber and Chris Long by Retiring Jerseys | date = 2007-11-25 | accessdate = 2008-06-19 | work = VirginiaSports | publisher =University of Virginia ]Career statistics
Key: GP - games played; GS - games started; UA - unassisted tackles; AT - assisted tackles; TT - total tackles; T/L - tackles for a loss; PD - passes deflected; Int - interceptions
Awards and honors
* Second-team All-ACC (2006)
* First-team All-ACC (2007)
* ACC Defensive Player of the Year (2007)
* First-team All-American (2007)
*Ted Hendricks Award (2007)
*Dudley Award (2007)Professional career
Pre-draft
NFL Scouting Combine
*"Height": 6'3"; "Weight": 272
*"40-yard time": 4.75; "20-yard time": 2.71; "10-yard time": 1.53
*"Broad jump": 10'4"; "Vertical Jump": 34"; "20-yard shuttle": 4.21; "3-cone drill": 7.02
*"Wonderlic score": 34. [cite web | url = http://www.postgameheroes.com/?p=2097 | title = 2008 NFL Combine Results | author = Dagger | date = 2008-02-29 | accessdate = 2008-06-19 | publisher = postgameheroes.com] [cite news | url = http://www.ibabuzz.com/raidersblog/2008/04/21/chris-long-qa/ | title = Chris Long Q&A | first = Jerry | last = McDonald | date = 2008-04-21 | accessdate = 2008-06-19 | work = Inside the Oakland Raiders | publisher = Northern California Network]At the
NFL Combine , Long did not lift the bench-press reps of 225 pounds because of an injured thumb. [cite web | url = http://nfldraft.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=778825 | title = Long lives up to hype at Combine | first = Frank | last = Coyle | publisher = Rivals.com | date = 2008-02-25 | accessdate = 2008-06-19]Virginia Pro Day
*"Height": 6'3"; "Weight": 267
*"40-yard": 4.78; "Bench press": 370 lbs; "Squat": 640 lbs; "Power clean": 375 lbs [cite web | url = http://www.sportsline.com/nfl/players/draft/515627 | title = Chris Long | work = NFLDraftScout.com | publisher = The Sports Xchange | accessdate = 2008-06-19]t. Louis Rams
Long was drafted by the
St. Louis Rams second overall in the2008 NFL Draft . [cite web|url=http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/draft08/news/story?id=3368762|title=Dolphins, Rams take Jake, Chris Long; Falcons go with Ryan|work=Draft Central|publisher=ESPN|accessdate=2008-04-26] The selection made him just the second son of a Hall of Famer, afterKellen Winslow II , to be drafted in the first round, the fifth such player ever drafted, and one of two such players drafted in 2008 (the other beingMatthew Slater ). [cite news | url = http://www.tmrzoo.com/?p=357 | title = For NFL Rookies, The Real Father’s Day Comes This September | date = 2008-06-14 | accessdate = 2008-06-19 | publisher = The TMR Zoo | first = Bruce | last = Owens]Following the draft, Rams head coach
Scott Linehan named Long a presumptive starter on defense, a notion that Long rejected and instead felt he needed to earn. [ [http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5h9XbKyehJs5QXH7frwzrPNIIijqAD909RLC82 Associated Press.com] ] The Rams also announced their plans on using Long as both a linebacker and defensive end to showcase his athleticism; [ [http://www.sportingnews.com/yourturn/viewtopic.php?t=404913 Sporting News.com] ] Long considered such versatility one of his best assets. [ [http://www.stlouisrams.com/article/67489/ St. Louis Rams.com] ]On July 19, 2008, Long agreed to terms on a six-year $56.5 million contract with the Rams with $29 million guaranteed. [ [http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=3497035 ESPN - Rams first-round pick Long agrees to six-year deal - NFL ] ] [ [http://www.nfl.com/draft/story?id=09000d5d808c2409&template=with-video&confirm=true NFL.com] ]
On September 14, 2008, Long recorded his first career sack against the
New York Giants .Personal
Chris has two younger brothers; one of them, Kyle, is a
pitcher andfirst baseman who signed with Florida State University. [cite news | url = http://www.roanoke.com/sports/college/wb/117191 | work = Roanoke.com | title = Long shuns gridiron for college baseball | first = Doug | last = Doughty | publisher =The Roanoke Times | accessdate = 2008-06-19]References
External links
* [http://www.virginiasports.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=88799&SPID=10606&DB_OEM_ID=17800&ATCLID=1133501&Q_SEASON=2007 Virginia Cavaliers bio]
* [http://www.stlouisrams.com/team/players/67526/ St. Louis Rams bio]
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