Charles Haley on Randy Gregory: 'The Cowboys got a steal'
Two decades ago, Charles Haley played the role of an enigmatic, pass rushing dynamo for the Dallas Cowboys en route to three Super Bowl wins in four years.
Haley may have seen a shadow of his younger self, when the Cowboys selected defensive end Randy Gregory in the second round of the 2015 NFL Draft.
The Hall of Fame elect was sufficiently impressed by Gregory, who was considered to be a sure-fire top-10 selection, prior to failing a drug test for marijuana at the NFL Scouting Combine.
Although he will soon be immortalized in Canton, Haley once was a relatively unknown player selected in the fourth round of the 1986 NFL Draft out of James Madison University, and knows what it's like to supplant more heralded players.
"The film that I saw, hey, the guy can get it done," Haley said to Clarence Hill of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. "I just can't believe that they got him in the second round. The Cowboys got a steal. You can't have enough pass rushers.
"The guy should come in with a chip on his shoulder from being a second-rounder. Just like a lot of those guys that got drafted later, you come here with an attitude ready to work, because most guys come in as a first rounder and they think they already got it. He's got something to prove."
Haley is the only player in NFL history to win five Super Bowls and was named to the Pro Bowl five times in his career. However, Haley's propensity to party and disrupt meetings with a series of obscene gestures became an equal part of his legacy.
No one can dispute Haley's talent and he was enamored with Gregory's on-field relentlessness.
"The best pass rushers are those that don't have fear," Haley said. "When I watched this kid play, he's not afraid to stick his nose in there. He's not afraid to be great."
Under the leadership of owner Jerry Jones, Dallas cultivated a reputation for being willing to take players who are considered high-risk, high-reward talent, an assertion Haley agrees with.
"He's got an owner that's not only going to stand with him, but stand in front of him and take some of the blows,” Haley said. "And Jerry (Jones) is not alone. He has a family of ex-players that love the Dallas Cowboys and are willing to come back and help."
Joining the defending NFC East champions may have been a blessing in disguise for Gregory, and winning Haley's approval may ease his transition to The Lone Star State.