 Long with theTennessee Titans in 2021 | |||||||||||||||
| Profile | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Linebacker | ||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
| Born | (1996-10-12)October 12, 1996 (age 29) Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S. | ||||||||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | ||||||||||||||
| Weight | 225 lb (102 kg) | ||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||
| High school | Winton Woods(Cincinnati, Ohio) | ||||||||||||||
| College | West Virginia (2015–2018) | ||||||||||||||
| NFL draft | 2019: 6th round, 188th overall pick | ||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||
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| Awards and highlights | |||||||||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics as of 2024 | |||||||||||||||
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David Lamont Long Jr. (born October 12, 1996)[1] is an American professionalfootballlinebacker. He playedcollege football for theWest Virginia Mountaineers.
When Long was seven years old, he was on the back of a bike being pedaled by his older brother when he was hit by a car driven by someone who was not paying attention. He was treated at the hospital with head and arm injuries.[citation needed] He attendedWinton Woods High School inCincinnati and finished his career with 283 careertackles, sixsacks, and sixinterceptions. Long was a high school teammate of safetyMike Edwards, who was selected by theTampa Bay Buccaneers in the third round of the2019 NFL draft.
Longredshirted in 2015 and made his collegiate debut as a redshirt freshman for the2016 team in the season-opener againstMissouri on September 3 with four tackles as a reserve.[2]
Long missed the first month of the season due to a summer knee injury. As a redshirt sophomore for the2017 Mountaineers, his best statistics were his 18-tackle (including a school record 7 for a loss (meaning the offense lost yardage as a result of his tackle)) effort against theOklahoma State Cowboys on October 28 and his 2.5-quarterback sack performance in the December 26,2017 Heart of Dallas Bowl against theUtah Utes.[3][4]
Among his best games as a redshirt junior for the2018 team were his 15-tackle (3 for a loss) effort againstTexas Tech on September 29 and his 3-sack performance on November 10 againstTCU.[5][6] That season, he was named as a 2018 first-teamAll-Big 12 Conference selection and as the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year,[7][8] after leading the Big 12 intackles for a loss.[9] Long is the second Mountaineer to be named a conference defensive MVP (Canute Curtis, 1996Big East), and first since the Mountaineers joined the Big 12.[10] Long earned2018 College Football All-America Team second-team recognition by theWalter Camp Football Foundation,[11] and theAssociated Press.[12] On December 30, 2018, Long announced that he would forgo his final year of eligibility and declare for the2019 NFL draft.[13]
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 ft11+1⁄4 in (1.81 m) | 227 lb (103 kg) | 30+3⁄4 in (0.78 m) | 10 in (0.25 m) | 4.81 s | 1.65 s | 2.78 s | 4.27 s | 6.88 s | 31.0 in (0.79 m) | 9 ft 3 in (2.82 m) | 18 reps | |
| All values fromNFL Combine/Pro Day[14] | ||||||||||||
Long was selected by theTennessee Titans in the sixth round (188th overall) of the2019 NFL draft.[15] During Week 10 against theKansas City Chiefs, Long forced afumble off running backDamien Williams which was recovered by teammateRashaan Evans for a 53-yard touchdown in the 35–32 win.[16] He finished his rookie season with 15 tackles as a backup linebacker andspecial teamer.[17]
Long played 14 games during the2020 season, making five starts at the end of the season, recording 54 tackles and a forced fumble.[18] He was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list by the team on November 16, 2020,[19] and activated on November 28.[20]
Long entered the2021 season as the startinglinebacker for the Titans, playing only 10 games due to injuries. He recorded 75 tackles and two interceptions.[21]
Long continued the2022 season as a starter for the Titans. He suffered a hamstring injury in Week 13 and was placed oninjured reserve on December 10, 2022.[22] He finished the season with 86 tackles and two interceptions.[23]
On March 17, 2023, Long signed a two-year, $11 million contract with theMiami Dolphins.[24] He started all 17 games for the Dolphins in the2023 season, recording a career-high and team-leading 113 tackles.[25]
Long returned as a starter for six games in the2024 season, but lost his starting job in Week 8, only playing on special teams for two more games before being released on November 13, 2024.[26] He made 38 tackles during his season with the Dolphins.[27]
On November 18, 2024, Long signed to theDetroit Lions practice squad.[28] He was promoted to the active roster on November 27.[29] Long played five games with the Lions during the2024 season, making seven tackles and a fumble recovery.[27] He was released on December 24.
On December 25, 2024, Long was claimed off waivers by theTennessee Titans, set to return to the team that originally drafted him.[30] However, he was waived the next day after a failed physical.[31]
| Year | Team | Games | Tackling | Fumbles | Interceptions | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Comb | Solo | Ast | Sk | TFL | FF | FR | Yds | TD | Int | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | PD | ||
| 2019 | TEN | 14 | 0 | 15 | 9 | 6 | 0.0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 2020 | TEN | 14 | 5 | 54 | 30 | 24 | 0.0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 2021 | TEN | 10 | 9 | 75 | 46 | 29 | 0.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 3.0 | 6 | 0 | 6 |
| 2022 | TEN | 12 | 12 | 86 | 52 | 34 | 0.0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 2.0 | 4 | 0 | 5 |
| 2023 | MIA | 17 | 17 | 113 | 64 | 49 | 1.0 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 2024 | MIA | 8 | 6 | 38 | 26 | 12 | 0.0 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| DET | 5 | 1 | 7 | 3 | 4 | 0.0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Career | 80 | 50 | 388 | 230 | 158 | 1.0 | 27 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 10 | 2.5 | 6 | 0 | 15 | |
| Year | Team | Games | Tackling | Fumbles | Interceptions | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Comb | Total | Ast | Sk | TFL | FF | FR | Yds | TD | Int | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | PD | ||
| 2019 | TEN | 3 | 1 | 13 | 10 | 3 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2020 | TEN | 1 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2021 | TEN | 1 | 1 | 8 | 6 | 2 | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career | 5 | 3 | 26 | 20 | 6 | 1.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
Long is the son of David and Deon Long. He is one of 12 children.[32] David’s father, David Sr., is a former professional boxer who went 12-5-2 as a heavyweight. He once fought future world champDeontay Wilder.
