For the record: I think Chris Long is an exceptional defensive end. And I will be very pleased if Miami ends up drafting him.
I do think that Vernon Gholston is a better prospect. He's a more gifted athlete, more explosive and a more versatile player. His skills, to me, seem as if they will translate a lot better at the NFL level than Long's.
Long had himself a very impressive combine Monday. The Internet is all atwitter over his performance. Here's the video. I swear you can hear Mayock and Eisen coming in their pants as they watch him. Wow! Look at him! He's so fired up! What a motor! He can't stay still!
But Gholston had himself an equally impressive day and even surpassed Long in some of the drills. In fact, he made me come. Plainly put, Gholston is half-man, half animal. He's a Manimal.
He weighed in at 266 lbs. then did 37 reps on the bench press. 37 reps of 225 lbs. That's the same amount of reps top offensive lineman prospect Jake Long recorded. Gholston officially clocked in at 4.67 in the 40. This guy is a linebacker/defensive end. He can bench that much and yet run in the 4.6's and is nimble and quick? Holy mother of pearls that's awesome.
And now to sound like an experienced NFL scout when clearly I am not (and neither are you, ya dildo!): Gholston was fluid and displayed tremendous quickness, explosion and speed during the position workouts. He showed great field awareness, foot work and raw athleticism. He was impressive all around. And I'm telling you, whoever drafts The Manimal is going to have an absolute beast on their roster. They're going to have to keep him in a cage before kickoffs, lest he run over to the opposing side during warm ups and rips off the quarterback's head with his bear hands.
Here are the combine drills results for both Long and Gholston:
Long:
40: 4.75
225: Did not participate
Vert: 4.21
Broad Jump: 10.04
3 Cone: 7.02
Gholston:
40: 4.67
225: 37
Vert: 4.4
Broad Jump: 10.05
3 cone: 7.12
The results are very similar. Long might be slightly more polished, as evidenced in the 3 cone drill -- a difference of 10 seconds. But Gholston is stronger, faster and more athletic. Again, I'm fine with Long. But if we get Gholston, I'll be one freakishly happy Dude. It'll be just like first the time I saw real-life boobs. Well, not exactly like it. But very close.
