Staten Island Advance

From Unlikely to Undenied

Midland Beach native Steve Gregory is currently a 35-year-old defensive assistant on the Detroit Lions' coaching staff.

Prior to that, he spent eight seasons patrolling defensive backfields as an NFL safety for the San Diego Chargers (2006-11) and New England Patriots (2012-13).

But before any of that, he was an unheralded, undersized athlete, at 5-foot-11, 200 pounds, seeking an opportunity.

It didn't come...right away.

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Staten Island Advance

High School Phenom

Gregory, a two-time Advance All Star, two-time All-City selection, and two-time Fabbri Award winner as Staten Island's top HS player, wasn't even afforded an invite to the NFL combine after graduating Syracuse University in 2006.

He rushed for over 2,000 yards during his senior season at Curtis, was selected to New York's All-State team, and led the Warriors to a pair of PSAL City Championships in 1998 and 1999.

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Staten Island Advance

Extraordinary Athlete

At Syracuse, he was a two-way player, chipping in at wide receiver as well as defensive back, while also returning punts and kicks.

Despite his size, Gregory was an extraordinary athlete -- aside from running a 4.4, 40-yard-dash time at his pro day, he was Staten Island's long jump champion during his days as a track star at Curtis.

But what he lacked in size, he made up for with work ethic.

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Staten Island Advance

Words of a Legend

"Steve Gregory was a true professional, and a pleasure to coach," said Bill Belichick, who coached Gregory during his final two seasons in New England.

"He was one of the most well-liked and respected players because everything he did was the right way," added Belichick.

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Staten Island Advance

Prevail

Gregory played in 111 NFL games after signing with San Diego as an undrafted free agent in 2006, amassing 357 tackles, seven interceptions and a pair of touchdowns en route to reaching three conference title games during his career.

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Staten Island Advance

Butt Fumble?

One of his touchdowns came following one of the most infamous plays in New York football history -- the "butt fumble."

Gregory, who grew up a Jets fan, scooped-and-scored on a fumble that came after Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez ran directly into one of his lineman's rear ends, causing the ball to come loose, which led to the TD.

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Staten Island Advance

What A Career

"After entering the league as an undrafted free agent, I was fortunate to play twice as long as the average player," said Gregory after retiring in 2014.

That same year, the Curtis product was elected to the Staten Island Sports Hall of Fame.

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Staten Island Advance

Full Circle

Following his playing career, he returned to Syracuse, where he served as an assistant special teams coach from 2015-2017.

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Staten Island Advance

Back in the Game

This past season, Gregory rejoined the NFL ranks on Matt Patricia's coaching staff in Detroit.

Patricia was Gregory's defensive coordinator in New England.

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Rich Kane Photography

A Charger

San Diego Chargers strong safety Steve Gregory (28) during the second half of the game at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ. The Jets defeated the Chargers 27-21.

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