News
July 19, 2012
Chris O’Leary
Edmonton Journal
Dylan Steenbergen waited three years before he could start living his dream.
The 24-year-old’s wait began in Montreal. There, he was buried behind talented tackles Jeff Perrett and Josh Bourke. While the Alouettes had used their first-round pick in 2009 to nab the Lethbridge product and University of Calgary standout, Steenbergen got no closer than the sidelines with his first Canadian Football League team.
“I think Dylan will play the next 10 years, but he was stuck behind some good players,” Als general manager Jim Popp told the Montreal Gazette’s Herb Zurkowsky last summer after Steenbergen was dealt to the Edmonton Eskimos for sixth-round CFL draft picks in 2012 and ’13. Steenbergen played the waiting game in a new city for the rest of the 2011 season.
“Some wait it through. Some get antsy. But Dylan was great and worked hard,” Popp said. “He’s athletic and has great feet. However, unless there were multiple injuries, he wasn’t going to see the field much. This might be a great thing for him.”
When Joel Bell broke his ankle and Greg Wojt’s knee injury landed him on the nine-game injured list this season, the door finally opened for Steenbergen.
Steenbergen got his first start on July 8, in the Eskimos’ 17-1 loss to the Saskatchewan Roughriders. It was a dream realized, but it was a nightmare loss that saw Edmonton quarterbacks hauled down six times.
Steenbergen and his O-line brethren bounced back last Friday, though, tightening up against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in a 42-10 win, where the Eskimos only gave up two sacks.
“It was a good couple of games,” Steenbergen said. “It was challenging, with the circumstances (against Saskatchewan), but it was pretty great. The fans out there are pretty intense, but it was my first game playing in and I still feel like things (on a personal level) went pretty well.
“(Against Winnipeg) I definitely think, as an O-line, we played pretty well together and that definitely showed. We took it real serious, watched a lot of film. We decided we’d play for each other rather than going out there and smashing into everything.
“We said, ‘Let’s go out there and play as a line,’ and that’s what we did against Winnipeg. I’ll be honest, it felt a lot better.”
Eskimo offensive line coach Tim Prinsen said Steenbergen has been consistent in his two games as a starter.
“He actually performed at a pretty good level against Saskatchewan,” Prinsen said. “There were a few hits (on quarterbacks) and such, but not a lot came from him. He performed pretty well and he continued on in his game against Winnipeg.
“He’s done well for himself; he’s continued to work hard. He’s doing all of the right things to get prepared for games and I don’t see any reason why he can’t continue playing at a high level.”
While his playing time has ramped up this year, Steenbergen’s work ethic remains the same. He was the last player off the field through his first season in Edmonton, keeping veterans like Patrick Kabongo and Brian Ramsay after practice to work through drills.
“All of that hard work is starting to pay off for him,” Prinsen said. “He continues to compete at the high level that he’s doing and we know he will.”
From lining up against Odell Willis in Saskatchewan, to facing Jason Vega last Friday against Winnipeg, life won’t get any easier on Friday night for Steenbergen against the defending Grey Cup champion BC Lions.
“They’ve got the two big interior guys there (Keron Williams and Khreem Smith) that always cause a ruckus,” Steenbergen said “Once again we’re going to get in the film room and work as an O-line again.”
It’s a stress he welcomes.
“I’m having a blast,” he said. “I’m loving being out there and contributing to the team and starting and it feels great. I’m enjoying every second I’m out there.”
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