Though Randy Gregory's play has been overshadowed by the five penalties he's accumulated in the last two games, the Dallas Cowboys defensive end is playing the best football of his career. Gregory has recorded four sacks in the last five games and five sacks in his last seven. He leads the team in sacks since Week 10 and is second on the team (behind DeMarcus Lawrence) in pressures during that same span.

While Gregory needs to improve his situational awareness (roughing the punter and face mask penalties against New Orleans), he fell victim to some terrible officiating as well. The neutral-zone infraction against the Saints was a bad call, which took away a Lawrence sack, and the roughing-the-passer penalty against the Eagles was even worse, which took away Gregory's would-be sixth sack.

The frequency of the penalties will certainly dissipate as Gregory's fortunes turn and he gains more experience. If you focus too much on the penalties, it's easy to miss that Gregory is playing at the highest level of his career, providing Dallas with a Robin to Lawrence's Batman in terms of rushing the passer.

Gregory is a uniquely talented individual blessed with a 6-foot-5 frame, improved bulk (listed at 242 despite his weight dropping into the 220s when he was suspended last year) and elite athleticism (he tested in the 92nd percentile among NFL defensive ends, in terms of SPARQ, through his NFL combine and pro day testing).

When Gregory declared for the 2015 NFL draft, he was regarded as the premier pass-rush talent of the class; yet, off-field issues and the NFL's archaic drug policy robbed Gregory of the opportunity to become that type of player. Until now.

Through all the trials and tribulations, Gregory is finally playing at a level akin with his talent. So far this season, Gregory has recorded 16 tackles, six for loss, 28 total pressures, five sacks and six quarterback hits, which equals a 7.3 pass-rush productivity rating, per Pro Football Focus -- OK numbers for a complementary pass rusher.

But since Week 10, Gregory has really turned it on, accumulating four sacks, three quarterback hits and 17 total pressures, equaling a team-best 8.5 pass-rush productivity rating in that time span.

The biggest reason for Gregory's improved play as of late?

A potent speed rush.

Prior to Week 10, the former second-round pick struggled with the effectiveness of his speed rush. He was devoid of that extra gear and lower-body flexibility necessary to race around the outside edge of left tackles in the NFL, forcing him to generate pressure with power and hand technique for the most part.

Gregory then underwent arthroscopic surgery to clear up a knee issue during the Cowboys' bye week. It must have gone well, because Gregory's speed rush has been as effective as ever since he returned from surgery (Week 10). Here's a great example:

Randy Gregory's sack vs the Saints. pic.twitter.com/KRmBpKEE7G — Jim Jeff (@CowboysGifs) December 11, 2018

On this play, Gregory is aligned with an outside shade over Saints left tackle Jermon Bushrod. Once the ball is snapped, Gregory explodes upfield like a sprinter coming out of the blocks.

After pushing vertical with his first step, Gregory widens his track while still gaining ground with his second step in an effort to set up his angle of entry into the pocket. On his third step, Gregory executes a well-placed long-arm stab with his left hand while preventing Bushrod from latching on to his frame with his right hand, effectively shortening the corner.

From there, Gregory's speed, balance and lower-body flexibility take over, as he seamlessly transitions from attacking upfield to flattening toward the quarterback, utilizing a dip-and-rip move with his inside arm that effectively reduced his blockable surface area while rounding the corner and allowed him to knock the ball from Drew Brees' hands for the sack and forced fumble.

Notice the angle Gregory is able to contort his body at so he can run as tight a track as possible around the edge. That's Von Miller-level lower-body flexibility.

Beating Bushrod with a speed rush is great, but beating six-time All-Pro Jason Peters with a speed rush (on multiple occasions) is even better. Let's take a look at the sack that counted:

Randy Gregory's sack vs PHI. pic.twitter.com/ecpnqhih2R — Jim Jeff (@CowboysGifs) December 11, 2018

Here, Gregory is aligned with an outside shade over Peters. Once the ball is snapped, Gregory fires out of his stance and pushes vertically, as he attempts to stress Peters' pass set. Once he gets within striking distance, Gregory feints a chop move with his inside hand before dipping his inside shoulder, reducing his blockable surface area.

From there, Gregory kicks into an extra gear around the edge, as he's able to accelerate and cross Peters' face while flattening to the quarterback, forcing him to either fall off the block or commit an obvious hold to prevent Gregory from continuing toward the QB.

Even though Wentz steps up in the pocket, Gregory effortlessly rolls his hips around the corner and pursues downhill to bring Carson Wentz down from behind for the sack.

Pay attention to how Gregory's stride length fluctuates throughout his rush (wide angle is the best), as it's a big reason he's able to beat the All-Pro.

Gregory's rush begins with three short, choppy steps as he reads the pass set of Peters. On his fourth and fifth steps, Gregory elongates his stride in an attempt to gobble up as much ground as possible as he starts to turn the corner; still, Peters is still in prime position to thwart Gregory's pass rush as he mirrors the Cowboys defensive end up the edge.

On his sixth step, however, Gregory shortens his stride, giving the appearance that he's giving up on the speed rush, which lulls Peters to sleep for just a moment. Gregory takes advantage by elongating his seventh and eight steps, which allows him to quickly accelerate past Peters. On his ninth step, Gregory somehow throws on the brakes at the same time he rolls his hips nearly 90 degrees, which allows him to continue a downhill pursuit for the sack.

Gregory's trump card is his speed, but he's not a one-trick pony. On top of his venomous speed rush, Gregory has also shown improved power and hand technique in recent weeks. Here's a great example:

On this play, Gregory is aligned with an outside shade over Falcons left tackle Jake Matthews, who is currently PFF's No. 8-rated offensive tackle and has given up just 21 total pressures this season. Once the ball is snapped, Gregory attacks vertically for two steps before converting his speed to power with a bull rush.

Gregory did an excellent job initiating contact with the proper pad level and hand placement. The leverage Gregory created allows him to maximize his power output on Matthews. Furthermore, because Gregory attained inside hand position, he's able break Matthew's grasp on his frame as he rolls his hips and lifts Matthews with his bull rush.

This allows Gregory to knock Matthews back on contact, forcing him to "open the gate" -- or turn his shoulders perpendicular to the line of scrimmage -- which enables Gregory to pressure Matt Ryan to affect the throw, which fell incomplete.

When Gregory isn't racing around the edge or bull-rushing through an offensive tackle, he has the ability to win inside as well. This play is an excellent example:

Here, Gregory is lined up at his usual spot at right defensive end, across from Peters. After the ball is snapped, Gregory explodes out of his stance before executing a three-step stutter move, as he is looking to deepen and widen Peters' pass set to make room for the inside move.

It works, as Peters continues to gain depth in his pass set, giving Gregory just enough space to win inside. Gregory opted to use a swim move to beat Peters inside, putting himself in perfect position to bring down Wentz.

It's not a coincidence the defense has played its best ball of the year at the same time Gregory has come into his own as a pass rusher, as generating pressure on the quarterback creates room for errors by the opposing offense and makes everything easier on the rest of the defense.

When the Cowboys selected Gregory with the 60th overall pick in the 2015 draft, many (including me) thought he would develop into an electric pass rusher off the edge. Fast forward three years, through all the trials and tribulations, and Gregory is finally playing at that level, giving Dallas two pass rushers with legitimate double-digit sack potential.

Better late than never.

Twitter: @JohnOwning