Cardinals’ Victor Dimukeje seeing hard work, patience pay off in Year 3

TEMPE — Entering the season, most of the talk surrounding the Arizona Cardinals outside linebackers room focused on:

– Zaven Collins moving from inside to pass rusher.
– Cameron Thomas making a big Year 2 jump.
– BJ Ojulari’s potential right out the gate as a rookie.
– Dennis Gardeck being Dennis Gardeck on and off the field.

Even Jesse Luketa got some added run thanks to his dual-threat ability as a fullback and linebacker.

But when Week 1 rolled around, it was a name not making offseason headlines that picked up the season-opening start alongside Collins in Victor Dimukeje.

Not only did he start, Dimukeje made the most of his 25 defensive snaps (35% of available reps) behind a sack, one tackle for loss, a forced fumble and a QB hit.

He followed that up with a half-sack, two tackles and two QB hits in Week 2 on three fewer snaps (22).

In a defense that encourages creativity and versatility, Dimukeje fits the bill in coordinator Nick Rallis’ scheme. He can set edges, rush inside and out and use his wits to get the better of the guy across from him.

But above all else, he embraces competition and a team-first mentality that Rallis requires of his players.

It’s a credit to Dimukeje’s work ethic, patience and overall ability to buy in and trust the vision head coach Jonathan Gannon and Rallis have for the unit and franchise as a whole.

“I’m just playing a lot faster in the pass rush and using my hands better and just overall effort running to the ball and a greater confidence level when I’m out there,” he said Monday.

“It’s a big deal for me, because this is my third year and I’m trying to take that huge step in my game and it’s paying off so far,” the LB added. “Just got to keep building off of it, keep trying to put the team in positions to win and just get better every week.”

After seeing most of his action as a special teamer throughout the past three seasons, Dimukeje is finally making his mark consistently under the new regime.

In Gardeck’s eyes, it was all about Dimukeje getting a legit chance at proving himself. The captain knew his teammate had the juice, he just needed a shot to show it.

“I think a lot of it is just opportunities,” Gardeck said last Monday. “He’s been a great pass rusher for us and it’s just nice to see the opportunities come in and him capitalizing on those opportunities.

“He made a huge leap from Year 1 to Year 2 and he’s continued on that trend. It’s nice to see him have that success.”

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