Sunday, April 13, 2008

Draft Prospect Analysis: Vernon Gholston


VERNON GHOLSTON
Defensive End | Junior | Ohio St.
Height: 6-3 | Weight: 266 | 40-Time: 4.67

Strengths:
A terrific athlete...Good speed and quickness...Has a cut muscular physique...Very strong with good power...Has an outstanding motor...Does a solid job against the run...Has excellent range and is a terror in pursuit...Is able to get pressure off the edge or as a bull rusher...Good tackler...A hard worker with top intangibles...Very productive...Versatile and can play more than one position...Still has some upside.

Weaknesses:
Needs to be more consistent...Questionable awareness and instincts...Undersized if he were to play defensive end...Does not have a lot of experience dropping into coverage...Has some work to do when it comes to technique...May have to learn a new position at the pro level...At times he gets by on his natural ability...Does not have an elite burst...Some durability issues...A better athlete than football player?

Notes:
Could be either a 4-3 defensive end or a 3-4 outside linebacker in the NFL...Broke his left hand in the '05 season opener and redshirted...Beat Michigan's Jake Long for the only sack he surrendered as a senior..A workout warrior with rare physical tools but he was also very productive..Can be a Shawn Merriman type of player at the next level with some development..The best pure pass rusher in the '08 Draft.


GHOLSTON BEAT Michigan's Jake Long

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