Nebraska’s Randy Gregory Failed Combine Drug Test
Well, Randy Gregory is officially in ‘stage 1’ of the NFL’s drug program after a failed test at this year’s scouting combine, per a detailed report from NFL Network. Here are some highlights from that tell-all article about Gregory and his apparent weed-smoking issue.
“I blame myself,” Gregory said. “And I know it sounds cliché, but there’s really no one else I can blame.”
“Am I worried? Yeah, I’m worried,” he said. “At the same time, I’m confident. I know I’m going to be all right in the end.”
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“I don’t wake up every day saying, I’d really love to go smoke,” he said. “It’s not a struggle for me every day (now), it really isn’t. In the past, hell yeah, it’s been a struggle. It really has been. Now, I’m focused on my dream.”
“At the end of the day, it was my fault. I was being selfish. I was being stubborn. I felt like I could do things my way and it would work. And it didn’t work.”
“I don’t want my career to be defined by the fact that I had failed a drug test or anything of that sort,” Gregory said. “I want people to remember me as that top-10, top-five (draft pick) that had a 10-year career, a number of championships. I want to be known as that guy. I don’t want to be known as a bust or that guy who came in (to the league) with a drug habit.”
“I want people to really understand that I know I made a mistake, for one,” Gregory said. “That I knew what I had coming up (the combine), and I still made that mistake. That was dumb.
“I want people to understand I’m not some dumb jock pothead. I’m not,” he added. “I’m intelligent. I love the people who help me, I love my family, I love my support group. I love football. I love winning. And I don’t want to be labeled as some bust that couldn’t make it because he smoked. And I won’t be labeled as that.
“So I just want people to understand that. This may be a setback. You may look at me a certain way, but at the end, I’m still going to be on top. I’m still going to do well.”
Gregory Getting Bigger, Faster
In addition to having drugs in his system at the Scouting Combine, there were reports that emerged around that time that he had played defensive end in college at near 220 pounds, perhaps less than that. For a guy who is 6-foot-6, that’s an insanely low figure to play defensive line.
Now, Gregory is allegedly between 240-245 pounds and ran a 4.53 second 40-yard dash. There is no denying this man is a freakish talent with merit as a potential top 10 selection.
Nebraska's Randy Gregory improved on his combine numbers during a workout today with Chip Smith in Atlanta: 243 lbs, 26 bench reps, 4.53 40
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) March 25, 2015
He ran a 4.64 at the Scouting Combine.
Draft Stock Affected?
The real question here is whether or not Gregory’s stock will be affected by this issue. They say that past behavior is the best way to predict future behavior, but Gregory seems genuinely remorseful though you never know what guys are going to be willing to say — even about themselves — in order to make sure they get the biggest paycheck possible.
In the end, I don’t think Gregory’s stock will be affected all that much but that will be determined on a case by case basis for each NFL team. Some teams might feel like if they are making a first round investment in this guy, he’s already down 0-1 in the count and two more strikes equals a significant suspension.
We’ve seen how that worked out for guys like Josh Gordon, who also has had similar issues staying away from marijuana or people who smoke it.
If a team determines that Gregory is proving enough off the field that they don’t have to worry about it, he could still be a top 10 selection. If teams decide that Gregory’s past behavior and habits are going to continue in the NFL, he could see a significant drop.
After all, Justin Houston — the NFL’s sack leader this past year — was a star at Georgia before a dumb failed drug test at the Combine pushed him down to the third round of the draft.
What’s Next?
It seems like Gregory has embraced this habit, or addiction, or whatever you want to call it and is dealing with it accordingly. He has accepted the fact that he has a problem with it, and is trying to take appropriate measures to make sure it’s rectified for his future employer’s sake.
Not to mention, his own.
I think if Gregory is truly sorry about what he’s done, no matter what you think about players smoking marijuana (still against the rules) he has to prove to a team that he is trustworthy and worth their significant investment in this year’s draft.