BOB DODNNAN | US Presswire

Chris Long performed linebacker drills for 49 coaches or scouts representing 29 teams, including Rams head coach Scott Linehan.

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- The Chris Long whom teams evaluated at the NFL Scouting Combine was exclusively a defensive lineman.

On Tuesday, it was Chris Long the linebacker who was on display at Virginia's pro timing day.

Of course, NFL teams might have projected Long as a linebacker when they saw him at the combine, but the drills in which he participated were suited for defensive linemen and he was tested with the defensive linemen.

"To those people who wanted him to work out at linebacker, he said, 'I'm going back home and work on those things and I'll do all linebacker drills when UVa has their pro day,' " Cavaliers' coach Al Groh said.

Long weighed 267 pounds when he arrived at UVa's practice field Tuesday morning. He was listed at 284 pounds during the regular season.

Neither Long nor offensive tackle Branden Albert participated in the testing Tuesday, having been satisfied with their performance at the NFL Scouting Combine in early February.

Tight end Tom Santi also went to the combine but wanted to see if he could better his numbers and lowered a 4.75-second 40-yard time to just under 4.6.

Also working out were offensive lineman Ian-Yates Cunningham, linebacker Jermaine Dias, tight end Jonathan Stupar, safety Nate Lyles and fullback Josh Zidenberg.

Lyles might have been the surprise of the session, running the 40 in 4.46 seconds, doing 22 repetitions at 225 pounds, recording a 36-inch vertical leap and going 9 feet, 10 inches in the broad jump.

"He was awesome," Long said. "That was Nate. We're not surprised. I'm glad he got to show his stuff. As good as he might work out, he's a better teammate and just a tough, tough kid."

When the testing was done, Long and Albert did individual drills. Albert worked under the watchful eye of venerable Washington Redskins line coach Joe Bugel while Groh worked out Long.

"It was the drill I used in going to schools to work out linebackers many times," said Groh, a linebackers coach for 10 years in the NFL.

"If I was here all by myself, this is the workout we would do."

Long, the ACC defensive player of the year and a unanimous All-American, played defensive end in a 3-4 scheme at Virginia.

However, some teams might feel he lacks the bulk to be a 3-4 defensive lineman in the NFL.

"The most important thing is the body of work from when he played," Groh said. "I don't think there's going to be any great revelation as to his skills. His skills have been apparent for quite some time."

Long is now viewed as the player most likely to be selected with the first pick of the NFL Draft.

Miami, which has the first pick in the draft, was represented Tuesday by new linebackers coach Jim Reid. Reid, no stranger to the surroundings, is a former head coach at Richmond and VMI.

There were 49 coaches or scouts representing 29 teams. Scott Linehan of the St. Louis Rams, who have the second overall pick, was the only head coach on the premises.

"We just talked football," Long said, "and a little bit about what I like to do off the field. They just like to get to know you. If a team's looking to make an investment in you of that magnitude, they have every right to do that.

"I have no preference where I go; I have no preference where I'm picked. What's important is the career after that, whether you're picked [No.] 1 through 30."

At the combine, when Long was clocked in 4.71 for the 40, it caught the attention of scouts who saw him as a possible linebacker.

"I feel I can do anything they want me to do," Long said.

"I didn't think about the pros last year and I wasn't really thinking about it during the season. As bowl practice came along and people started talking, you'd hear, 'Hey, you could play some linebacker in the league.' "

Long said he probably had five linebacker tutorials from Groh before Tuesday.

"I think I bruised him last week," Long said.

"I think it's a hip bruise, [but] I don't want to see it if I did. Coach Groh's a warrior. You saw him out there today. He wasn't limping around or anything.

"It's been pretty easy stuff to pick up. But it's football and when the bullets are flying, it's going to be a different thing.' "