Dimukeje Feels Confident in Year 2: 'Everything is Easy For Me'

"I've been dancing since college. Like whenever I make a play, I like to dance."

Arizona Cardinals second-year outside linebacker Victor Dimukeje told reporters Monday about his after-play dancing celebrations dating back to college. 

He did a lot of dancing in the team's 36-23 win over the Cincinnati Bengals when he registered a pair of sacks, two quarterback hits, a tackle for loss and a forced fumble.

The 2021 sixth-round pick from Duke didn't have a lot to dance about on the field last season. He totaled three tackles in 14 games and was mostly a special-teams player.

Last Friday, Dimukeje showcased his abilities and still believes there's more work in his game to be done.

"I think I played a good game," Dimukeje said. "(There) is a little bit of stuff I need to work on.  Just finishing plays off and just little tweaks that can improve my game. But overall, I think I did a good job . . . I had so much fun. We're just having fun out there and embracing each other."

The NFL can be a cruel place for rookies. It wasn't easy for Dimukeje to go from having 16 sacks in his last two years at Duke to having new coaches and expectations as a rookie. 

Now in Year 2 of coordinator Vance Joseph's defense, Dimukeje has a better sense of the playbook and his surroundings.

"I understand the plays now," Dimukeje said. "Everything is easy for me. It feels second nature now . . . I felt like last year, I was looking around a lot, not knowing what I'm doing. But now with the Cincinnati game, it just felt natural. I felt good out there and it felt great to be back out here.

"I trust my technique a lot more. I'm playing way faster (and) trusting my power, using more speed and just laying the stuff we work at in practice. I'm using what I'm good at to my game rather than trying to change it up."

When it comes to pass-rushing, Dimukeje put emphasis on his explosion during the offseason. He told reporters that his work in the offseason got him "in the best shape" of his life.  

He needed to get better with the Cardinals drafting two third-round outside linebackers Myjai Sanders and Cameron Thomas, plus seventh-round choice Jesse Luketa. Arizona already has likely sure-thing 53-man roster spots for Markus Golden, Dennis Gardeck and Devon Kennard.

Dimukeje understands that NFL teams are a revolving door for players.

"It's another guy coming for your job every year," Dimukeje said. "You just got to embrace your position, put in more work and come back better than the last year . . . Make it hard for the coaches to keep you off the field."

Despite the outside linebacker position being packed in what would seem to be a stress-filled position for Dimukeje, the 22-year-old embraces the camaraderie of his teammates. 

"We just (try) to push each other . . . It's a healthy competition . . . We want to see each other do good. And you can see it every day. We love each other when we get out there," Dimukeje said.

The Cardinals will play the Baltimore Ravens in their next preseason matchup on Aug. 21. The Ravens currently have a 21-game preseason winning streak.

Dimukeje knows a lot about the Ravens since he's from Baltimore. Hall of Fame linebacker Ray Lewis was his idol, but he also told reporters that former Ravens legend and Cardinals linebacker Terrell Suggs stopped by at his rec games as a kid.

As for the game, Dimukeje is up for the challenge that Baltimore brings.

"They're a tough group and like to run the football . . . I know they're gonna come in and try to play hard and so we just (have) got to match the intensity and exceed it."