DENVER — The Broncos are expected to sign defensive end Randy Gregory, The Gazette confirmed Tuesday. The deal will be five years and worth $70 million with $28 million guaranteed. It will not be official until 2 p.m. Wednesday when the new league year begins.

The 29-year-old pass rusher spent the first five years of his career in Dallas and was expected to sign with the Cowboys until the Broncos were able to get a deal done last minute. The Cowboys thought Gregory was staying in Dallas Tuesday morning until they changed the wording his contract and Gregory decided to head to Denver instead. 

Last season, Gregory was one of the best edge rushers in the NFL, totaling six sacks and 19 tackles in 12 games played. Gregory generated one hit or sack every 16.4 pass-rush snaps, according to Pro Football Focus. That rate ranked seventh among 94 edge rushers.

Gregory has had interesting NFL career, after failing a drug test at the NFL Combine in 2015. Because of that, his stock dropped him out of the first round and he was eventually drafted by the Cowboys in the second round out of Nebraska. In 2016, Gregory was suspended for 14 games for failing two drug tests. Gregory was later suspended for the 2017 and 2019 seasons again for substance abuse. He was officially reinstated by the NFL in 2020 and has played the last two seasons in Dallas. Gregory has had quite the turnaround since the suspensions, becoming a beloved teammate in Dallas and voted to the team’s leadership council last season. 

Gregory fills one of the Broncos’ top needs this off-season as Denver has been in need of more pass rushers to pair with outside linebacker Bradley Chubb. Gregory will also be joined with former 49ers defensive tackle D.J. Jones, who agreed to terms on a three-year, $30 million deal with the Broncos Monday.