| No. 72, 69, 63 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position: | Guard | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born: | (1978-11-27)November 27, 1978 (age 46) Phoenix, Arizona, U.S. | ||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | ||||||||
| Weight: | 305 lb (138 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school: | Glendale (AZ) Cactus | ||||||||
| College: | Arizona State | ||||||||
| NFL draft: | 2002: 7th round, 249th pick | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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Kyle Kosier (/ˈkoʊʃər/; born November 27, 1978) is a formerAmerican footballguard who played in 143 games in theNational Football League (NFL) for theSan Francisco 49ers,Detroit Lions, andDallas Cowboys. He playedcollege football atArizona State University.
Kosier was born inPeoria, Arizona, to Keith (a recycler) and Marlene Kosier, and isJewish,[1] as is his mother.[2][3][4] On discovering thatDallas Cowboys teammateIgor Olshansky was also Jewish, he said: "That's kind of cool to have a teammate share the same faith that I have".[5]
Kosier attendedCactus High School inGlendale, Arizona,[6] where he was aletterman infootball,basketball,baseball, andtrack and graduated in 1997.[4] Infootball, his athleticism allowed him to playmiddle linebacker at a bigger size than most players could. As a senior in 1996, he was named Class 4A All-State, theArizona Republic named him to the All-Arizona Team, andKPNX-TV named him the 1996 Arizona Class 4A Defensive Player of the Year.[4] He finished with 634 career tackles.
In 2011, he became the firstfootball player to have his jersey retired by Cactus High School.[7]
Kosier accepted a scholarship fromArizona State University to playdefensive end, but a shortage ofoffensive linemen made him convert tooffensive guard as aredshirt freshman.[7] The next year, he started the last two games of the season atright guard.
He was a starter at right guard as a junior and atright tackle as a senior, receiving honorable-mentionAll-Pac-10 honors.[8][4]
Kosier was selected by theSan Francisco 49ers in seventh round (248th overall) of the2002 NFL draft.[9] He played mostly onspecial teams as a rookie. The next year, he became a starter at bothleft guard and right tackle.
In 2003, he started 7 games at left guard, 3 at right guard and 2 at right tackle. The next year, he started 16 games rotating betweenleft tackle (10 games) and right guard (6 games).[10]
On April 19, 2005, theDetroit Lions signed him as arestricted free agent to a one-year contract, reuniting with his former 49ers head coachSteve Mariucci.[11] The 49ers did not match the offer and received a seventh-round draft choice (#223-Marcus Maxwell) from the Lions as compensation.
Kosier was initially used by the team as aswing tackle, until being named the starting left guard for the last 11 games.[11]
On March 11, 2006, he was signed as anunrestricted free agent by theDallas Cowboys to a five-year, $15 million contract.[11][12] Although the move was made to replaceLarry Allen at left guard,[13] it didn't get much acknowledgment because Kosier was a relatively unknown player. He started 80 games over six seasons, missing 13 games in 2008 with ahairline fracture in his right foot and 3 with knee/ankle injuries in 2010.[14]
During the2011 season, he was moved to right guard to help with the development of rookie right tackleTyron Smith, who became aPro Bowl alternate. Kosier played that year with aplantar fascia injury, before suffering a tornmedial collateral ligament in his left knee in the last game of the regular season.[15]
Throughout his Cowboys years, he always remained an important presence in the locker room, often getting recognition for the versatility, chemistry, and stability he provided to theoffensive line. On March 19, 2012, he was released after becoming expendable with the signings offree agentoffensive guardsMackenzy Bernadeau andNate Livings.[16] In his NFL career, he played in 143 games.[2]