You surely remember tight end Colt Lyerla.
The Green Bay Packers signed the troubled, but talented Lyerla after a tryout last offseason. You immediately anointed him a Hall of Famer, based, we imagine, on his freakish athleticism. Then he injured his knee in August and the Packers ended up releasing him, while pretending they might bring him back after his injury healed.
Predictably, the Packers did not bring Lyerla back. Predictably, a guy with a history of substance abuse issues left to his own devices got into trouble with the law for abusing substances.
Well, that’s all in the past now and Lyerla want another shot.
On Thursday, NFL.com reported on a training video of Lyerla that surfaced in which Lyerla explains how he’s clean and ready for another opportunity. The video seems to have disappeared since then, but this was the gist of it.
“To the NFL teams out there, obviously there have been a lot of bad decisions made in the past. But the past is the past and it’s going to stay in the past. 2015 has been a good year to me. The injury has healed well. I’ve been in a substance-abuse program for the past year and a half. I haven’t failed a test since, and my DUI case I had back in September has been officially dismissed,” he said. “We’re moving forward, and like an old coach I used to have, Chip Kelly, used to say: win the day. I think I have a long string of winning days, and I’m going to do whatever it takes to keep that process going moving forward and make an NFL 2015 roster.”
Now, we’re all for this kid getting another shot.
Who among us hasn’t been arrested for a DUI or cocaine possession?
What?
Oh, alright… never mind.
What we’re saying is, we’re not going to throw stones at a kid who made some shitty decisions in the name of having a good time. He has to live and deal with those decisions. Why shouldn’t he get another shot if he’s put his life back together?
Redemption is as American as the Green Bay Packers are.
Naturally, that brings us back to the Packers.
Their tight ends are garbage. The fans clearly embraced Lyerla when he was in Green Bay last year. So what do you say, Big Ted?