Tired of ads? Subscribers enjoy a distraction-free reading experience.
Click here to subscribe today or Login.

Former Nebraska defensive end Randy Gregory says he’s tested positive for marijuana at the NFL scouting combine last month and that he failed two drug tests at Nebraska last year.

OMAHA, Neb. — Defensive end Randy Gregory said he tested positive for marijuana at the NFL scouting combine last month and that he failed two drug tests at Nebraska last year.

Gregory disclosed his marijuana use in an interview with NFL Media on Wednesday.

Gregory went into February’s scouting combine projected to be among the top 10 picks in the draft. He declared for the draft after his junior season at Nebraska, where he recorded 17 1/2 sacks in two seasons.

He said he tested positive for marijuana at Nebraska in January 2014 and April 2014. Gregory said he hadn’t smoked marijuana since December.

“I blame myself,” Gregory told NFL Media. “And I know it sounds cliche, but there’s really no one else I can blame.”

Eddie Rhodman Jr., one of Gregory’s handlers, said on Thursday that Gregory would not comment further.

Gregory said he knows the failed drug tests could hurt his draft position.

“Am I worried? Yeah, I’m worried,” he said. “At the same time, I’m confident. I know I’m going to be all right in the end.”

Gregory, from Fishers, Indiana, played his freshman season at Arizona Western Community College in 2011 and missed 2012 because of a broken leg. He transferred to Nebraska in 2013.

Gregory missed two games because of injury last year but was not suspended for any after testing positive twice at Nebraska. The school’s drug policy was revised last October and now requires an athlete to be suspended for 10 percent of his team’s contests after a second positive test.

“I was worse at Nebraska than I’ve ever been at any other time of my life,” Gregory said of his marijuana use. “But I know how I am now. I think if teams really look at how I am now more so than the past, they’ll see I’m making strides to get better, as a person and as a player.”

Dallas accepting Hardy

PHOENIX — Dallas coach Jason Garrett says Greg Hardy must “do the right things from the beginning” to be part of the Cowboys.

Garrett said the team did an extensive examination of Hardy’s background before signing him.

“Like with any other player, you have to do your research about him and talk to people,” Garrett told reporters during the NFC coaches’ availability at the NFL owners meeting on Wednesday. “We had extensive talks with people going all the way back to high school.”

The talented but troubled defensive end was convicted in North Carolina last July of assaulting a female and communicating harassment, but the case was dismissed after Hardy reached a settlement with the victim.

“Obviously he’s one of the real good players at his position in the league,” Garrett said. “But our job is to make sure he comes in and does the right things from the beginning.”

Garrett said the Cowboys weren’t alone in trying to sign Hardy.

“There were some other people interested in him. There was competition,” he said. ” … We investigated him as a player, researched him as a person and decided this would be a good move for our football team.”

Hardy signed a one-year, $13 million free agent contract with the Cowboys, with only $1 million guaranteed. The rest of the money is tied to incentives.

Commissioner Roger Goodell said at his news conference Wednesday that the league continues to review Hardy’s case to determine if discipline is warranted.

Garrett said the Cowboys are well aware Hardy could face a suspension.

“We’ve got our arms around what the punishment might be,” Garrett said. “We’ve looked at the precedents for the last few years to get an idea and we talked to the league about it.”