Raiders can’t afford to gamble on Gholston

By Anthony Carroll  |   Thursday, April 24, 2008  |  Comments( 17 )

Oakland Raiders
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The 2008 NFL draft is just three days away and, as always, the Oakland Raiders are as secretive as ever. So secretive that even the team’s second-year head coach doesn’t quite know what to expect.

Or if he’ll even be involved in the whole process.

When asked by the Mercury News Tuesday whether he’ll have a say in choosing the fourth overall player in the draft, Kiffin responded, “I hope so. I hope I do. I wouldn’t anticipate it being any different than it was before.”

For the sake of avoiding another controversy, let’s hope Kiffin is anticipating correctly. Let’s also hope whoever makes that decision makes the “right” one.

Michigan offensive tackle Jake Long already committed to the Miami Dolphins at the No. 1 spot, leaving Arkansas RB Darren McFadden, Virginia DE Chris Long, Boston College QB Matt Ryan, Louisiana State DT Glenn Dorsey and Ohio State DE Vernon Gholston as the top remaining options on the board.

At this point, Oakland’s legitimate choices can be narrowed down to McFadden, Long and Gholston. Ryan’s out of the picture, considering Oakland spent the first overall pick last year on QB JaMarcus Russell, and Dorsey likely won’t drop past the Falcons at pick three.

According to Kiffin, though, McFadden can also be ruled out.

“Running back is really not a need for us,” the 32-year-old coach said this week. “We have three running backs that rotated for us last year all coming back, and then we also have Michael Bush.”

That leaves just Long and Gholston, both of whom are defensive ends -- a needy area on the Raider ‘D’.

If the decision comes down to the two, or if Long is off the board and Gholston is available at the Raiders’ slot, however, Gholston should not be an automatic, no-brainer pick.

That’s easier said than done. The former Big 10 defensive end, who shattered the Ohio State sack record last season with 14, is the type of specimen Al Davis has difficulty passing on. Gholston is 6-foot-4, 258 pounds, and he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.58 seconds at his pro day. At the combine, he ranked first among all defensive linemen in bench reps (37), vertical jump (35.5 inches) and broad jump (10 feet 5 inches).

In comparison, Long -- who’s the same height, but 17 pounds heavier -- ran his 40 in 4.75 seconds and only ranked at the top of all D-lineman in the 20-yard shuttle (4.21 seconds).

Gholston is compared to the Atlanta Falcons’ John Abraham. Long is compared to the Green Bay Packers’ Aaron Kampman.

So what’s wrong with Gholston?

For one, his stock has certainly been inflated by his recent performance at the combine, which coincidently is something Davis values very highly when assessing a player.

He’s also not the type of end who would fit particularly well in Oakland’s defense. Gholston played the “Leo” position at Ohio State, which allows for an end to both rush the passer and shift back into pass coverage on particular downs. That would make for an easy transition into a 3-4 defense, but Oakland plays a 4-3.

The Raiders also ranked 31st against the rush last season, and need more than just a pass-rush-oriented end. They need someone who has experience wrapping up the ball carrier. Gholston had 14 sacks in 2007, but coupled that with just 25 solo tackles. In his 34-game collegiate career, he only ended up 87 total tackles.

Long, on the other hand, recorded 187 tackles in 43 games with Virginia, including 79 tackles last season and 38 career stops for a loss. Dating back to his days at St. Anne’s-Belfield High School in Charlottesville, Va., Long was a dominant all-around end, rated a four-star prospect by Rivals.com. Gholston didn’t start playing DE until he reached Ohio State; most of his time in high school was spent on the offensive line.

Plus, Long’s father, Howie (a former Raider D-lineman enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame), has ties to Davis.

Then again, that might not be a good thing.

Anthony Carroll can be contacted at
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About Anthony Carroll

Anthony Carroll began writing for RealFootball365.com on Sept. 26, 2005, making him one of the longest tenured contributors to the “365” team. As a senior writer, Anthony has taken on the task of delivering original content to the silver and black faithful year round, despite having to deal...
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CommentsComments: 17  |  Sign Up  View all comments
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No.1
07:53 AM
04/24/2008
I absolutely agrre with this article. I don't want Gholston in S&B;. I said yesterday I feel he can be a beast 3-4 OLB (Merriman...
No.2
rayray		09:05 AM
04/24/2008
It appears to me Al Davis is poised to take a DE or McFadden. I think if C. Long is gone then the pick will be McFadden. For all...
No.3
rayray		10:32 AM
04/24/2008
Chris long is probably better prepared at this point but Ghoulston has far more upside. The man is a beast. I like him. I find...
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