The Los Angeles Rams agreed to trade Jalen Ramsey to the Miami Dolphins on Sunday, but what they’re getting in return isn’t as much as many people expected it to be. The Dolphins are sending the 77th overall pick and tight end Hunter Long to the Rams in exchange for the three-time All-Pro cornerback.
We’ll have to wait and see what the Rams will do with their newly acquired third-round pick, but Long is a player who will join the roster immediately when the trade goes through. So who is Long and what sort of value does he bring?
Let’s get to know the Rams’ new tight end.
1
He’s a relatively athletic tight end with good size
Long isn’t going to blow anyone away with his athleticism, but he does have good movement skills and explosiveness for his size. At 6-foot-5 and 253 pounds, Long ran a 4.63 in the 40-yard dash at his Boston College pro day (he didn’t attend the combine) and jumped 10 feet, 2 inches in the broad. His broad jump would’ve tied for the fourth-best of any tight end at the 2021 combine and his 40 time would’ve been the eighth-fastest at his position that year.
His 32.5-inch vertical is just average but his 40 time and broad jump show he moves well for a 6-foot-5 player.
Hunter Long was drafted with pick 81 of round 3 in the 2021 draft class. He scored a 8.6 RAS out of a possible 10.00. This ranked 131 out of 929 TE from 1987 to 2021. https://t.co/YYkFH5dMk7 #RAS #Dolphins pic.twitter.com/NpdmRoOwUq
— Kent Lee Platte (@MathBomb) May 1, 2021
2
He was a third-round pick in 2021, the third TE drafted
Long came into the NFL as a third-round pick two years ago and was the third tight end drafted that year. He was selected 81st overall after Kyle Pitts (4th) and Pat Freiermuth (55th) so it’s not as if he was an afterthought in that draft class. He was actually well-regarded as a top-100 player and one of the better tight ends available.
Unfortunately, it hasn’t translated to NFL production the way it has for Pitts, Freiermuth and even Tommy Tremble to an extent. But Long was one of the top tight ends coming out of college in 2021.
3
He only has 1 career catch and has played just 183 offensive snaps
Speaking of Long’s lacking production, he has done very little as a receiver in the NFL. Through two seasons, Long has caught only one pass and has been targeted just three times. His one catch and three targets all came in 2021, too, so he didn’t even see a single pass thrown his way in nine games last season.
It’s not as if Long came into the NFL as a blocking tight end with little experience as a pass-catcher, either. He caught 57 passes in his last season at Boston College in 2020, along with 28 receptions in 2019.
4
His run blocking needs work but there’s potential
As a rookie in 2021, Long was a run blocker on 63 of his 90 snaps played, according to PFF. Last season, he played 62 run-blocking snaps. He graded out at 52.8 in 2021 and 58.6 last season, so his run blocking hasn’t been the best.
There is potential with that part of his game, however. He brings plenty of effort to the running game and while he might not have the strongest base as a blocker, he does his best to seal off defenders and create holes for his running backs, even if he doesn’t sustain those blocks as long as someone like George Kittle does.
Hunter Long had a key seal block that opened up the lane for Duke Johnson to run through on both of his touchdown runs. He had some other great run fits throughout the game too. It’s awesome to see him get out there and make an impact that led to 100+ yds and 2 TDs for Duke 💪🏻 pic.twitter.com/frIeKOOC3R
— King of Phinland🐬👑 (@KingOfPhinland) December 24, 2021
5
He averaged 14.6 yards per catch in college
Long caught 89 passes during his three-year career at Boston College, totaling 1,297 yards with three touchdowns. He averaged a very healthy 14.6 yards per catch, which was helped by his 18.2-yards-per-catch average as a sophomore in 2019.
He has the speed and size to win downfield as a receiver, which allows him to make big plays beyond just short passes near the line of scrimmage. That’s something the Rams should utilize on offense because last season, Tyler Higbee’s targets primarily came within 5 yards of the line of scrimmage.
6
He’s primarily an inline tight end but can also play the slot
Long has good athleticism for a tight end but he still mostly works as an inline player attached to the O-line. According to PFF, he played 81 of his 90 offensive snaps as an inline tight end in 2021. Last season, he played 84 of his 104 offensive snaps in that same role, lining up as a slot receiver 14 times and out wide six times.
That alignment split could change as a member of the Rams in 2023 and 2024, but they’re also a team that likes to keep their tight ends attached to the formation rather than splitting them out.
