2024 NFL Draft Profile: Cedric Gray, LB, North Carolina

Pros:

Elite athletic skills — Made Bruce Feldman’s ‘Freaks List’ at number 41. He wrote: “At 6-3, 270, he has just 11.3 percent body fat, and he vertical-jumped 36.5 inches, broad-jumped 10 feet and bench pressed 390 pounds. This offseason, he topped over 20 mph on the GPS and did six pull-ups with a 70-pound belt attachment.”

Gray can be used as a rangy run defender inside, instinctive when it comes to locating the ball with the quickness to get to it before blockers can react at the second level.

He plays bigger than his listed size, with the functional strength and motor to take on and hold ground against much bigger blockers.

Has a compact build, but Gray is a crafty edge player who is very good against the run. He sets the edge and effectively wards off blocks with a strong core, powerful limbs, and natural leverage.

He has an excellent feel for working off blockers and knowing how and when to counter as the play goes on.

Accelerates rapidly and has a great feel for angles. He isn’t huge, but he packs a pop.

Gray has violent hands and consistently breaks away and disengages from blockers. He’s instinctive, reading, reacting and locating the ball quickly, and finishing plays as an authoritative, wrap-up tackler

Cons:

He’ll need to be covered up to be effective. He’s not the kind of guy you can line up in the pass rush and have him bend the edge; he’s limited to shooting through gaps.

As a run defender, he’s too much of a grab-and-drag tackler, lacking violence and too frequently allowing running backs to escape.

He’s not a guy who can be put on the edge every down and be expected to consistently create pressure.

Summary:

In 2023 as a senior Gray logged playing time in 12 games and logged a total of 880 snaps for the Tar Heels. He also added solid 80 tackles, 31 assists, and 54 stops. While in coverage Gray made 3 pass breakups, one interception, and QB rating when targetted of 79.0. As a pass rusher, he tallied 21 total pressures, which included 9 QB hurries, 7 QB hits, and 5 sacks on the season

Information in this article first appeared on NFL Draft Buzz and is used with permission. Find the latest coverage, analysis, and player rankings for the 2024 NFL Draft at nfldraftbuzz.com