Is Gosder Cherilus a Goner, Detroit Lions Fans?

Is Gosder Cherilus going to be remembered as the last Matt Millen first-round draft bust? This dubious distinction may be his only Lions legacy.

On July 6, 2007, 28-year-old Sean Maney, was hospitalized with a spinal injury after an alleged barroom scuffle with Gosder.

But Cherilus wasn’t flagged for a chop block, or anything. Apparently, there were off-setting penalties. Our boy caught a break.

Gosder Cherilus was the 6’ 7”, 320-pound co-captain of the 2007 Boston College Eagles. He had an OK college career and entered the 2008 NFL draft. The NFL Combine results indicated that everything about Cherilus was average.

There was Millen waiting to pounce on him with the 17th pick overall.

Poor Gosder. First, he went in a draft that saw Jake Long, the “man-mountain” offensive tackle from Michigan taken by Miami with the first pick overall. Then, to add insult to injury, he got drafted by the Lions.

Hey Gozzie, isn’t Detroit exactly the same as Port-au-Prince, only different?

I know, I know, it’s unfair of me to mock someone who has to write the snap count on the palm of his hand. I simply had to find a way to give him a hockey moniker.

The only meaningful accomplishment during Cherilus’s 2008 rookie campaign was that he beat out George Foster for the starting job at right tackle. Woooo Hooooo!

Remember George Foster? No, not the George Foster who played for the Cincinnati Reds. The George Foster who suffered several debilitating injuries from being hit repeatedly by penalty flags. Remember the one that got stuck in his face mask?

Gotta do something about those beanbags!  Did you see the arm on that head linesman?

Anyway, our Gosder was benched mid-season by M&M for not having a thorough understanding of the snap count. Cherilus could be seen on the bench with a Bozo Decoder Ring, and moving his fingers in a mysterious manner that vaguely looked like counting in a Creole dialect. Hmmm.

Then came 2009. Hope renewed.

Cherilus was plugged in at right tackle. There seemed to be a short circuit, however, as that pesky snap count bedeviled him yet again.

Cherilus recorded nine sacks (that’s given, not taken). That would make him a productive defensive pass rusher! He allowed eight QB hits and a whopping 24 QB pressures.

Gosder’s YouTube moment occurred when he took the Vikings’ Jared Allen’s knees out after being cleanly beaten. The video has been removed (really) due to its “offensive” nature.

Now, you Backus bashers should take heed. Jeff Backus, the 12th ranked offensive tackle overall in 2009, has been Gosder Cherilus’s rodeo clown, deflecting the heat off of Cherilus for two years.

Everyone says this season is it for Gosder Cherilus. A "do or die" season. He will either reach maturity now or be drafted by the UFL.

Or get a gig as a Boston bar bouncer.