The Cincinnati Bengals are signing Arizona State Sun Devils linebacker Antonio Longino as an undrafted free agent.
ASU head coach confirmed the news on Twitter while congratulating Longino for making his NFL dreams a reality.
Congrats @Tony_3x just got picked up by @Bengals Cincy just got a great one! Another Sun Devil in the NFL! pic.twitter.com/jf1txdzdwf
— Todd Graham (@CoachGrahamASU) May 1, 2016
Longino has been a beast for the Sun Devils over the past two seasons, racking up 157 total tackles, 27 tackles for loss and 10.5 sacks across 26 games.
Here's an excerpt of Longino's NFL.com scouting report:
STRENGTHS Extremely active even after being blocked initially. Plays with hustle and works until the whistle blows. Productive 2015 with 11 sacks and 22.5 stuffs to go with two forced fumbles. Has a decent spin move in his rush game. Blitzed and stunted from all along the defensive front and has a talent for timing snaps.
WEAKNESSES Play strength on the edge is below the NFL minimum. Unable to hold up at the point of attack. Found himself being driven off the line of scrimmage to open massive rushing lanes. Mechanical mover without sudden, athletic twitch. Lacking a quality, upfield burst. Poor job of controlling point of attack with a strong punch. Allows blockers into his frame.
DRAFT PROJECTION Undrafted free agent
BOTTOM LINE While the stats look promising, the tape reveals a player who benefited a great deal from the Sun Devils' twisting, blitzing, stunting scheme. Longino is a rush end only who is not strong enough at the point of attack to play on the strong side or talented enough as a pass rusher to play on the open side. Should find himself in a camp, but could struggle to make a roster.
The Bengals are building a bit of a pipeline with ASU as Longino now joins Vontaze Burfict, Christian Westerman and Marcus Hardison as former Sun Devils now in Cincinnati.
And after the Bengals did pretty well with Burfict as an undrafted Sun Devil, maybe they strike twice as Longino put up some big numbers in a Power 5 conference.