Crossword Genius

As drawn, they vary in length (6)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

straws

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'as drawn they' is the definition.
The definition suggests a plural noun which matches the answer.

'vary in length' is the wordplay.
I cannot really understand how this works, but
'length' could be 'r' (r is a kind of length) and 'r' is located in the answer.
The remaining letters 'staws' is a valid word which might be clued in a way I don't see.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for straws that I've seen before include "Hollow tubes for drinking" , "Lots" , "are drawn thusto drink!" , "Dried stalks used as fodder or bedding" , "Thin tubes to suck up liquid" .)

I've seen this clue in the Evening Standard.
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