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Jerry Jones and the Dallas Cowboys took a chance on drafting the talented defensive end Randy Gregory with the thinking that he could very well be the next Charles Haley. This is why they are allowing him to wear No. 94 and are more importantly giving him the support system that he so desperately needs to overcome all of his mental issues and possibly turn into the player that NFL scouts believe he can be.
So while the projected lineup for the Cowboys has second-year player Demarcus Lawrence and seventh-year pro Jeremy Mincey listed as the starting defensive ends for the 2015 season, you can certainly expect Gregory to get his fair number of opportunities to stake his claim as a starter for the coming year. Mincey had a solid season last year when he finished with 36 tackles and six sacks on a team that couldn’t consistently get any pressure on the quarterback. If you look at the skill level of both Lawrence and Gregory, both players have what it takes to rack up double digits in sacks in any given year; they just need the opportunity to do so.
Gregory’s speed and power off of the edge is something that has already impressing his teammates, especially Pro Bowl tackle Tyron Smith and we are only in the early phases of the OTAs. You can tell the difference between a solid NFL player who is working hard simply stay in the league and a player whose natural ability makes the game seem easy at times. It certainly appears that Gregory falls into the latter category.
As he gets more and more coaching and learns better technique from defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli and assistant line coach Leon Lett, his game and his impact on the field will get better.
You can just look at Rolando McClain if you need a recent example of this; he was out of the league for two years but the Cowboys decided to take a flyer on him knowing that he was a special player who had the talent to make an immediate impact if given the opportunity. And once he fell under the leadership of Marinelli, he took the starting middle linebacker spot by storm, helping turn what was once a horrible defense into a solid unit that helped get the Cowboys back in the playoffs.
So given the talent level and the investment the Cowboys have made in Gregory, you can certainly bet that he will be starting alongside Demarcus Lawrence when the team takes on the New York Giants on opening weekend this September.
Kelly Anderson is a blogger for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @bgipp01 or add him to your network on Google.
