Cedric Gray, LB North Carolina: 2024 NFL Draft Profile

Gray was a three-star linebacker and wide receiver recruit from Ardrey Kell High School in Charlotte, N.C. in the class of 2020

North Carolina linebacker Cedric Gray will compete for one of the top five linebacker spots in the 2024 NFL Draft. The 2022 All-ACC selection has long arms to make a difference in zone coverage and poke the football out. Gray recently intercepted a pass against Miami and forced a fumble against Syracuse.

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Cedric Gray, LB North Carolina: 2024 NFL Draft Profile

Classification: Senior weakside linebacker from Charlotte, N.C.

Background: Gray was a three-star linebacker and wide receiver recruit from Ardrey Kell High School in Charlotte, N.C. in the class of 2020. He was the No. 644 recruit according to 247Sports and No. 808 for On3.com. Gray was an unranked three-star recruit for Rivals and an unranked three-star recruit for ESPN with a 76 grade out of 100. He was a three-year team captain and two-way athlete in high school. Gray finished his career with 143 receptions for 2,467 yards and 27 touchdowns and 130 tackles, including 12 for loss with 4.5 sacks, and three interceptions during his two years on defense. As a senior, he produced 70 tackles, including six tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks, three interceptions, two passes defensed, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery. Gray caught 51 passes for 892 yards and 13 touchdowns. He was the SoMECK Conference Defensive Player as a senior after leading Ardrey Kell to an 11-2 record. As a junior, he produced 60 tackles, including six tackles for loss with three sacks on defense and 55 receptions for 891 yards and ten touchdowns. Gray made 37 receptions for 684 yards and four touchdowns as a sophomore. He earned a selection to the 2019 Shrine Bowl of the Carolinas. He also played basketball for three seasons. At a regional for The Opening in 2019, he ran a 4.61 40-yard dash and a 4.40 shuttle. Gray jumped 31.80 inches in the vertical.

Injuries & Off-Field: N/A

Awards: 2022 First Team All-ACC, 2022 Second Team All-American (Sporting News & PFF)

Pros: Special teams experience on the kick return, kick coverage, punt return, punt coverage, and field goal block units, enters 2023 with nearly 500 special teams snaps, excellent arm length, good vision to see and fit open gaps, gets skinny to shoot gaps, long arms poke the ball out for forced fumbles, arm length and active hands help deconstruct blocks, some rare success taking on and stacking linemen vs. Miami (2022), tosses away stalk blocks, discards and avoids WR stalk blocks well, quick to close on shallow crossers and limit YAC, quick to open his hips and run to the flats, reads the quarterback’s eyes, scans for threats and good awareness in zone coverage, good in man coverage vs. running backs, arms give him a wide area of influence in coverage, arm length to play the ball around the target, his pass breakup led to an interception vs. Oregon (2022), timed up some free runs through the A-gap as a blitzer

Cons: Committed four penalties in 2022, lean and thin frame, speed isn’t ideal for his build, slides off tackles, play strength leads to issues with block defeat, offers nothing against climbing linemen, easily displaced in the run game, lacks agility to bounce around pulling linemen, sealed by tight ends, would like to see a better motor in pursuit, need more hustle plays, late getting back into a player after slipping in coverage (allowing a touchdown) vs. Oregon, natural feel for threats in coverage is still developing, held in place by play action allowing an easy TD over his head to Davis Allen vs. Clemson (2022), Clemson’s Will Shipley stacked him on a wheel route (2022), stacked on wheel route by Jaylan Knighton (2022), doesn’t have the mass or pass rush plan to be an effective NFL edge rusher

Overview: Gray has special teams experience on the kick return, kick coverage, punt return, punt coverage, and field goal block units. He enters 2023 with nearly 500 career special teams snaps. Gray has a lean and thin frame with excellent arm length. He lacks ideal speed for a linebacker with his frame. Gray has good vision to see and fit open gaps. He gets skinny to shoot gaps and make plays in the backfield. The All-ACC linebacker’s long arms help him poke the ball out for forced fumbles, deconstruct blocks, and expand his range in coverage. He had success stacking linemen against Miami in 2022. Gray discards and avoids stalk blocks. He is quick to close on shallow crossers and limits yards after the catch. The senior reads the quarterback’s eyes and displays good awareness in zone. His arm length allows him to play the ball from behind the receiver. Gray is often tasked with carrying the running back in man coverage to the flat or on wheel routes. However, Clemson’s Will Shipley and Miami’s Jaylan Knighton stacked Gray in 2023, suggesting he doesn’t have the speed to handle more explosive players. His natural feel for threats in coverage is still developing. Play action distracts Gray, which leads to coverage busts and him allowing throws over his head. His play strength leads to issues finishing tackles and defeating blockers. Gray struggles to handle climbing linemen and is easily displaced in the run game. He lacks the agility to bounce around pulling linemen and is sealed by tight ends. Gray needs to show more effort in pursuit. He doesn’t have the mass or pass rush plan to be an effective NFL edge rusher, but he times up some good blitzes through the A gap.

Overall, Gray is a special teams ace with long arms that cast a wide net in coverage, poke the ball out for fumbles, and allow him to take on some blockers. He has too many coverage busts against running backs to project well into a slot coverage role. Gray lacks the play strength and density to stack and shed blocks consistently.

Role & Scheme Fit: Weakside linebacker in a 4-3 scheme

Round Projection: Late Fourth to Mid Fifth

Size: 6'2.5", 235 lbs. (Unofficial)

Submitted: 09-14-23