Gabe Wright enters NFL Draft with questions of consistency

AUBURN – Gabe Wright has the capabilities of a very good, perhaps excellent, pass rusher.

The question still remains whether the former Auburn defensive tackle can perform consistently for the NFL team that drafts him this weekend.

Wright saw his production fall from 31 tackles, 8 1/2 for loss with three sacks in 2013 to 24 tackles with 4 1/2 for loss but just one sack to go along with 10 hurries last season.

The inconsistency and drop in production, particular in pass rush, is why ProFootballFocus lists Wright among four interior defensive linemen with a "buyer beware" warning.

Wright's pass rush productivity, an analytic used by PFF to evaluate defensive linemen, against Power 5 opponents was 4.1, tied for 28th among D-tackles in this year's draft. By contrast, Montravius Adams scored a 9.2, ninth best among defensive tackles last season.

ESPN NFL Draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. said Wright "flashed second-round ability at times" but views the Columbus, Georgia native as a fourth-round selection.

"I thought he would be a second-round pick when the season began but his stock has dropped just a bit," Kiper said. "It depends upon how teams view him. Defensive tackle group, not spectacular, maybe he goes third-round area. I gave him more of a fourth-round grade this year because he had some games where he looked like an elite defensive tackle potentially."

NFLDraftScout.com had Wright ranked as the No. 14 DT, coming off the board in the fourth or fifth round.

As evaluations came in leading up to the Draft, Wright tried not to pay too much mind to the critics.

"I'm more internally motivated," he said. "I hold myself to a high standard. In my head I could be thinking I know I'm not a fourth rounder."

Wright had mixed test results at the NFL Combine.

His 34 bench press reps tied for second among defensive linemen but his 100-inch broad jump 26.5-inch vertical and 5.07 seconds in the 40-yard dash were less impressive, though still competitive among tackles.

Wright was pleased with his performance in drills at Auburn's Pro Day.

"I pride myself on my athleticism so I can't too much just brag upon what I was able to do athletically," Wright said. "That's not something that I brag about, it's just something I know I'm good at."

After losing weight to move to end to start last season, Wright went back up to 300 pounds in order to play tackle in a 4-3 defense, where he feels he's best fit.

"I'm versatile," he said. "I played every position (on the defensive line) in college and I feel like I can be good or even better from the zero (technique) out."