Randy Gregory's Size Concerns a Real Issue Heading into NFL Draft

Nebraska pass-rusher Randy Gregory came into the NFL Scouting Combine needing to show he'd put on a little weight.

"At 6'6", 240 pounds, I would hope that he can put another 15 or 20 pounds on over the next couple of years," NFL Media's Mike Mayock told reporters during a teleconference. "You'd love to see him at 260 or so, so he can be a little more physical. That's where he needs to get better."

Nati Harnik/Associated Press

Many players pack on or shave off weight prior to the combine in order to better fit what they think NFL teams want to see.

Bleacher Report NFL Draft Lead Writer Matt Miller had Gregory at No. 3 overall on his pre-combine big board, but he also had Gregory reporting at 245 pounds.

Instead of adding five pounds to his Nebraska-listed weight, Gregory set off a #DraftTwitter red alert when he weighed in at a meager 238 pounds.

Right as surprised tweets and reaction pieces—such as this one from CBSSports.com's Rob Rang—started hitting the Internet, Miller put the scouting-industrial complex on Defcon 1:

Players often lose weight throughout the grind of the season, but 218? That's skinny for a basketball player. That much weight falling off an already lean frame raises serious questions about Gregory's ability to maintain his build at 240, let alone develop it up to 260.

Gregory is working out as a defensive lineman, but it's hard to imagine a 6'5", 235-pound defensive end being able to get any kind of leverage or anchor in the run game against NFL offensive tackles.

There's plenty of room in the NFL for situational pass-rushers, but teams spending a top-five pick on a player need him to make an impact every down.

There's no question about the athleticism or pass-rushing potential he displayed at Nebraska. As Bleacher Report NFL Lead Writer Michael Schottey pointed out, Gregory was almost certainly putting out that good tape at a weight a little lighter than officially listed:

Even if his Nebraska listing was a little generous and his late-season weight loss wasn't that dramatic after all, a natural 235-pounder with no ability to get bigger doesn't have a bright future at defensive end.

If this sounds a bit familiar, it's because we just went through this in 2013, when 6'6" pass-rushing tweener Dion Jordan went No. 3 overall to the Miami Dolphins. Jordan is listed as Gregory's pro-player comparison by NFL.com.

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Jordan's struggled to stop the run or rush the passer as an NFL defensive end—and he's currently listed at 275 pounds.

That puts an entirely different burden on Gregory. Instead of showing up at the combine ready to prove he can put on weight, he'll need to prove he can excel in linebacker drills. As an outside linebacker—where, for the record, Miller projected him—Gregory will have to meet a higher standard of agility and athleticism.

That may or may not be a problem for Gregory, but that's not the only problem facing him, either.

As Miller reported in the Team Stream Now video below, Gregory's character, motor and effort are in question:

As Miller says in the video, 2014 No. 1 overall pick Jadeveon Clowney faced many of these same issues going into the combine—size, position projection, character, motor, effort—and still went No. 1 overall.

With a clean medical workout, great personal interviews and a dominant performance in this weekend's drills and tests, Gregory should still have teams lining up to build their defense around him.

If he can't answer questions about his transition to full-time linebacker and/or some of the injuries that nagged him throughout his Nebraska career are still a concern, though, the surprising news about Gregory's weigh-in could be a major concern for teams at the top of the 2015 NFL draft.