2015 NFL Draft: Randy Gregory vs. Michigan Film Breakdown

The play below embedded as a video is another instance of Gregory showing patience and instinctive play, and he also made a clean tackle to stop Gardner. Throughout the game, Michigan’s wide receivers had issues getting open, and this was compounded by Gardner’s inability to get rid of the football. He spent more time dancing around, and he tries to cut back to the other side of the field on this play. Instead, he’s met by Gregory, who does a great job of following Gardner’s run and not falling for any attempt at trickery when running behind Schofield and his tight end. This is a simple play, but it’s easy to screw up, because it takes both patience in pursuit and in the tackle. That said, this play did atone for a dreadful attempt at a tackle on an earlier Gardner scramble (about 4:30 left in the second quarter, if you want to check the play yourself…I don’t want to overload the piece with too many videos and GIFs), in which Gregory wildly flew at the QB from a bad angle, thus turning a loss into a gain for the Michigan offense.

Keeping in mind that this was just one game, I didn’t think Gregory had the best of days despite the fact that he was given three sacks and three tackles for loss. I mean, he played well and made plays, but he was negated far too often when lined up as a DE. He and the Nebraska defensive line benefited greatly from mistakes on Michigan’s end, including Gardner’s inability to get rid of the football, poor slide protections, and RBs being exposed in pass protection. One of Gregory’s sacks occurred when Gardner slid the team’s protection to the left, thus causing freshman RB Derrick Green to be matched up with him. That’s a free sack for Gregory and a big-time mis-match and mistake by the Wolverines. When he was actually matched by one of the opponent’s talented offensive tackles, he was effectively neutralized each time; his best pass rushes came when blitzing as a linebacker or when taking advantage of an unfair matchup.

And with that, I will present you with one final GIF to show a glimpse of Gregory’s pass-rushing ability when used as a linebacker. Thanks to his speed, explosiveness, motor, and ability to move through junk (an important skill for someone charging into the backfield from the second level), Gregory was successful when used by Nebraska as a blitzing linebacker. He usually blitzed up the middle, and this was the only time he could beat Lewan. Well,  he didn’t actually beat Lewan, because the left tackle chipped off Gregory to the guard, who must have greatly underestimated the powers of a charging Gregory. This might have been his best play of the game, because it encapsulates him as a disruptive pass rusher and physical specimen. I’d like to see him as a 3-4 OLB in the NFL (again, unless if he bulks up and works on his technique), because these kinds of plays suit him well. I mean, look at that motor. There’s no doubt in my mind that he’s a first-round pick, but his development next year will dictate whether or not he’s a 1-15 prospect in the 2015 NFL Draft or a 16-32. I think he’s set to explode next season, so I have faith in his ability to become a top-ten pick in 2015.