Randy Gregory May Never Play Again?

By now you’ve heard the not-so surprising news about Randy Gregory facing a longer suspension due to a missed drug test which essentially suggests guilt of probably failing the test. The Cowboys brass have no one to blame but themselves for this wasted draft pick.

Gregory’s drug habits seem to be on the level of Josh Gordon, facing suspension after suspension. These guys have talent, but rather spend it on stupid things. Knucklehead city.

Ian Rapoport suggests the Cowboys fear Gregory may never play another down:

My understanding of Randy Gregory's coming suspension is its for 10 games, at least. There is concern on #Cowboys that he may not play again

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) July 26, 2016

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I wouldn’t be shocked if this guy just keeps on his downward spiral and falls out the league.

What does anger me is all the rolling of the dice the Cowboys do with the 2nd round pick year-in and year-out. Whether it is medicals or off-field issues, the Cowboys tend to gravitate to the high risk – no reward type players.

I’ve been doing this blog since 2003, and I literally get the same sick feeling in my stomach everytime we draft in the 2nd round.Let’s go down memory lane and look at our 2nd round all-stars since 2003.

2003: Al Johnson, C – microfracture surgery, played two seasons as a starter and lost the gig to Andre Gurode.

2004: Julius Jones, RB – probably one of the rare picks that had moderate success under Bill Parcells.

2004: Jacob Rogers, OT – injury prone from the jump and considered one of the Cowboys biggest 2nd round busts in recent several years.

2005: Kevin Burnett, LB – another injury prone player, started his career with a knee injury and injuries plagued his career

2006: Anthony Fasano, TE – serviceable backup, but why spend a 2nd round pick. Minimal contribution. Terrible pick.

2007: no pick

2008: Martellus Bennett, TE – loud mouth that never caught on in Dallas. Has had moderate success after getting out of the Witten’s shadow.

2009: no pick

2010: Sean Lee, LB – a great player when not injured. Lee has missed well over a season’s worth of games due to injury.

2011: Bruce Carter, LB – red shirted his rookie year with a ACL injury he sustained his final year in college. When he got into the mix, he missed multiple games and was unreliable. His career arc was similar to Kevin Burnett.

2012: no pick

2013: Gavin Escobar, TE – the running joke for awhile was that the Cowboys would take another TE in the 2nd round, and it came to fruition in 2013. Escobar has had flashes, but another pick wasted in the 2nd round.

2014: Demarcus Lawrence, DE – we traded up to get Lawrence and he looked to be poised to having a breakout year this year, but he failed a drug test and will miss four games now. The jury is still out on Lawrence, but he better get straight and help this team out.

2015: Randy Gregory, DE – had a major drug history in college and it is continued in the NFL, looks like another bust. There’s just no way to believe this guy is going to just flip the switch. I don’t believe the rehab will help.

2016: Jaylon Smith, LB – Notre Dame is my college team I follow, so I love this player, but the gruesome injury is a big risk for the Cowboys to take. We’ll know if the Cowboys messed up by this time next year. I’m really hoping for the best with Jaylon.

So there it is, the 2nd round has not been too good for the Cowboys, and they have not learned. I think it is time to take a step back and re-evaluate how they look at players in the 2nd round. That is a high draft pick, and missing on a lot of these 2nd round picks is holding back this roster.

Mike Fisher summed up this latest Gregory fiasco with this tweet. Well said:

Root of #Cowboys problem here: They think they possess a Behavioral Magic Wand. And they are really, really wrong. @1053thefan

— mike fisher ? (@fishsports) July 26, 2016

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What’s your thoughts? Will Gregory just be another name in failed 2nd round picks in Dallas? Do you think rehab will help him turn it around?