Kristopher M. Dielman (born February 3, 1981) 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

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for the

San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team in the National Football League (NFL). The Chargers played in San Diego, California from 1961 until 2016, before relocating back to the Greater Los Angeles area, where the franch ...

of the

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(NFL) for nine seasons. He played

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for

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a state university system, system of Public university, public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. The system has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration o ...

. The Chargers signed him as an undrafted free agent in 2003, and he played his entire professional career for the Chargers. He was selected to the

Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (since 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's All-star, star players. The format has changed ...

four times, and was a member of the

Chargers 50th Anniversary Team The San Diego Chargers (now Los Angeles) announced their 50th anniversary team in 2009 to honor the top players and coaches in the history of the National Football League team. The Chargers were founded in 1959 as part of the American Football Leag ...

Early life

A graduate of Troy High School in

Troy, Ohio Troy is a city in and the county seat of Miami County, Ohio, United States. The population was 26,305 at the 2020 census, making it Miami County's largest city and Ohio's 55th-largest. Troy lies along the Great Miami River about north of Da ...

, Dielman was an all-state and all-conference linebacker and tight end. He also lettered in basketball. Off the field, Dielman was both homecoming and mid-winter king at Troy High School.

College career

After graduating from high school, he enrolled at

where he played for the

Indiana Hoosiers football The Indiana Hoosiers football program represents Indiana University Bloomington in NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision college football and in the Big Ten Conference. The Hoosiers have played their home games at Memorial Stadium (Indiana), ...

team. Kris played tight end for Indiana under former

offensive coordinator

Cam Cameron Malcolm "Cam" Cameron (born February 6, 1961) is an American football coach who was most recently the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach of the LSU Tigers football program. Cameron attended Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana an ...

and former Chargers offensive line coach Hal Hunter, and earned All-Big 10 honors his junior year. Dielman's blocking was a huge contribution to the success of then-IU quarterback

Antwaan Randle El Antwaan Randle El (; born August 17, 1979) is an American professional American football, football coach and former player who currently serves as the wide receivers coach and assistant head coach for the Chicago Bears of the National Football L ...

, who became the first player in the history of

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football with 8,000 pass yards and 3,000 rush yards in Dielman's junior season. Cameron was Dielman's head coach and Hunter was his offensive coordinator. Once Cameron got a job as the Charger offensive coordinator, Hunter left for North Carolina. Dielman's new coaching staff started playing him more at defensive line, a position he had experience throughout his college career and where he later became a team captain during his senior season.

Professional career

Dielman went undrafted out of college, but signed on with the San Diego Chargers on April 28, 2003. Dielman reunited with his former Indiana head coach Cam Cameron, who served as the Chargers' offensive coordinator. The Chargers converted him from a defensive tackle to an offensive lineman, and before long Dielman had established himself as a starter at

left guard In American football, a guard (G), otherwise known as an offensive guard (OG), is an offensive line player who lines up between the center and the tackles. Like other offensive line positions, guards are used primarily for blocking. Right ...

. Right away Dielman made a name for himself in large part due to his gritty, hard-nosed style of play on the offensive line. He was released by the Chargers on Aug 26 at the roster cut down to 65 before being re-signed to the practice squad on Sept. 1. He was then called up to the active roster with six weeks left in the season. By his fourth year in the league, Dielman was a rising star and an integral part of

LaDainian Tomlinson LaDainian Tarshane Tomlinson (born June 23, 1979), nicknamed "LT", is an American former professional football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 11 seasons. After a successful college football career with the T ...

's record breaking 2006 season. Dielman's teammates referred to him as their "enforcer" and "battering ram". Dielman was chosen as a 1st Alternate for the

2007 Pro Bowl The 2007 Pro Bowl was the National Football League's all-star game for the 2006 season. The game took place on February 10, 2007, at Aloha Stadium in Honolulu, Hawaii. The game was held on a Saturday instead of the usual Sunday after the Super ...

. In the off-season the Seattle Seahawks offered him a large contract worth $48.2 million but he returned to San Diego to sign a six-year deal with the Chargers that guarantees him $17 million over the first two years and is potentially worth $39 million, becoming one of the highest paid guards in the NFL. In an interview with

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's Jim Corbett, Charger

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remarked, "He's a special kid. The loyalty he showed is very, very rare. I knew if he could just be paid like a premier guard, he would stay with us because of who he is. Seattle was legitimate, and he didn't want any part of it. He said, 'I want to go home with my team.' It's the best thing in the world to happen for us. He's a Pro Bowler waiting to happen." In 2009, he started all 16 games for just the second time in his career and earned his third Pro Bowl invite despite allowing a career-high three sacks. He was penalized just three times on the season, the lowest total since he moved into the starting lineup in 2005. In December 2010, Dielman was selected as a Pro Bowl starter for the second time, his fourth Pro Bowl overall. Dielman suffered a

concussion A concussion, also known as a mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), is a head injury that temporarily affects brain functioning. Symptoms may include headache, dizziness, difficulty with thinking and concentration, sleep disturbances, a brief ...

in the sixth game of the 2011 season against the

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. He had a

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on the team plane after the game, and he missed the remainder of the season. In February 2012, Dielman announced his retirement from pro football due to the risk of further head injuries. On July 21, 2012, the San Diego Chargers released Dielman from the team's reserved-retired list by the request of his agent.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dielman, Kris 1981 births Living people People from Goshen, Indiana Sportspeople from Troy, Ohio Players of American football from Miami County, Ohio Players of American football from Indiana American football offensive guards American football tight ends Indiana Hoosiers football players San Diego Chargers players American Conference Pro Bowl players