Eric Steinbach (born April 4, 1980) is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

player who was a

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison gu ...

for nine seasons in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

Iowa Hawkeyes The Iowa Hawkeyes are the athletic teams that represent the University of Iowa, located in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. The Hawkeyes have varsity teams in 20 sports, 7 for men and 13 for women; The teams participate in Division I of the Nati ...

, and earned consensus

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

honors. He was selected by the

Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team plays its h ...

in the second round of the

2003 NFL draft The 2003 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League (NFL) teams selected amateur college football players. The draft is known officially as the "NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting" and has been conducted annually since 1936 NF ...

. He played for the Bengals from 2003 to 2006 and the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. The Browns compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team is named after ...

from 2007 to 2011.

Early life

Steinbach was born in

Joliet, Illinois Joliet ( ) is a city in Will County, Illinois, Will and Kendall County, Illinois, Kendall counties in the U.S. state of Illinois, located southwest of Chicago. It is the county seat of Will County, Illinois, Will County. It had a population of ...

. He attended

Providence Catholic High School Providence Catholic High School (often referred to as Providence, Provi, or abbreviated PCHS) is a Roman Catholic secondary school located in New Lenox, Illinois. Located in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Joliet, Providence Catholic is a private ...

in New Lenox, and played for the Providence Catholic Celtics

high school football High school football, also known as prep football, is gridiron football played by High school (North America), high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular high school sports, interscholastic sports in both c ...

team. He helped his team to a 50-game winning streak and four consecutive state championships. As a senior, he had 46 tackles, 55 assists, and a school record 26 quarterback sacks on his way to being named conference most valuable player and first-team all-state. One of the top high school players in the country, he was named Super Prep and PrepStar all-American.

College career

While attending the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (U of I, UIowa, or Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized int ...

, Steinbach played for coach

Kirk Ferentz Kirk James Ferentz (born August 1, 1955) is an American football coach. He is the head football coach at the University of Iowa, a position he has held since the 1999 season. From 1990 to 1992, Ferentz was the head football coach at the Universi ...

Iowa Hawkeyes football The Iowa Hawkeyes football program represents the University of Iowa in college football. The Hawkeyes compete in the Big Ten Conference. Iowa joined the Conference (then known as the Western Conference or Big Nine) in 1899 and played their first ...

team from 1999 to 2002. He received first-team All-Big Ten honors twice (2001, 2002), was the

Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference, among others) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Fa ...

Offensive Lineman of the Year (2002), and was recognized as a consensus first-team All-American (2002). Steinbach majored in education.

Professional career

Cincinnati Bengals

In the

, Steinbach was selected by the

in the second round (33rd overall) and was immediately named a starter. Through the 2006 season, Steinbach has appeared in 63 regular-season games, 62 as a starter, missing only one game. Steinbach's relentless work-ethic makes him a standout at the guard position. Yahoo! Sports called him one of the Top 10 Free Agents to watch for a few months prior to the end of the 2006 season. The versatile and durable Steinbach was able to play at the guard, tackle, and center positions on the offensive line, and his speed and athleticism helped to make him one of the league's premier pulling lineman.

Cleveland Browns

On March 2, 2007, (the first day of the year's NFL free agency period) the Browns signed Steinbach to a seven-year, $49.5 million contract (of which $17 million was guaranteed), making him at the time one of the highest paid offensive lineman in the league. He had consistently been rated as a top five free agent (and widely considered number one among offensive lineman) following the 2006 season by every major sports authority. On December 18, 2007, Steinbach was named as a first alternate for the

2008 Pro Bowl The 2008 Pro Bowl was the National Football League's all-star game for the 2007 NFL season, 2007 season. It was played at Aloha Stadium in Honolulu, Hawaii on February 10, 2008. The game was televised in the United States by NFL on Fox, Fox and b ...

at offensive guard. The Browns released Steinbach on March 14, 2012.

Miami Dolphins

Steinbach was signed by the

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. The Dolphins compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team ...

on July 26, 2012. He retired from professional football on August 22, 2012.

References

External links

Miami Dolphins bio

Cleveland Browns bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Steinbach, Eric 1980 births Living people All-American college football players American football offensive guards Cincinnati Bengals players Cleveland Browns players Miami Dolphins players Iowa Hawkeyes football players Players of American football from Joliet, Illinois