No. 74 | |||
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Position: | Defensive tackle | ||
Personal information | |||
Born: | Queens, New York, U.S. | February 11, 1965||
Height: | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | ||
Weight: | 260 lb (118 kg) | ||
Career information | |||
High school: | East Islip (Islip Terrace, New York) | ||
College: | Syracuse | ||
NFL draft: | 1988 / round: 1 / pick: 26 | ||
Career history | |||
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* Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||
Career highlights and awards | |||
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Career NFL statistics | |||
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Player stats at PFR |
Theodore Anthony Gregory (born February 11, 1965) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive tackle for one season with the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Syracuse Orangemen, earning consensus All-American honors in 1987. Gregory was selected in the first round of the 1988 NFL draft by the Denver Broncos.[1] He listed his height as 6'1".[2] However, a shocked Dan Reeves, who is also listed as 6'1"[3] commented, "I'm taller than he is!" upon meeting Gregory after the draft. By Reeves's estimate, Gregory was closer to 5'9".[4]
Gregory had injured his knee in his last collegiate game, and the knee gave out during training camp. Following scathing criticism from the press for wasting a pick on damaged goods, the Broncos traded him to the Saints for Shawn Knight before the season.[5] He is now regarded as one of the biggest draft busts in Broncos' history.[6] After the Gregory incident the Broncos began meeting with potential draft picks prior to the draft, a practice they had not previously engaged in.[citation needed]
Gregory blew out his knee in this third game with the Saints, and never played in the NFL again. After a series of failed business ventures drained his life savings, he took a job as a construction worker, only to have that end due to a ruptured disc in his back that temporarily rendered him a paraplegic.[5] Gregory placed 8th in Deadspin's "The 100 Worst NFL Players of All Time".[7]