Chris Van Zeyl (born September 4, 1983) is a Canadian former professional

gridiron football Gridiron football ( ),"Gridiron football"
''Encyclopædia Britannica'' ...

offensive tackle Offensive may refer to: * Offensive (military), type of military operation * Offensive, the former name of the Dutch political party Socialist Alternative * Fighting words, spoken words which would have a tendency to cause acts of violence by the ...

who played for 15 years in the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; , LCF) is a Professional gridiron football, professional Canadian football league in Canada. It comprises nine teams divided into two divisions, with four teams in the East Division (CFL), East Division and f ...

(CFL) for the

Montreal Alouettes The Montreal Alouettes (Canadian French, French: ''Les Alouettes de Montréal'') are a professional Canadian football team based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1946, the team has disbanded twice and been re-established thrice. The Alouettes compe ...

Toronto Argonauts The Toronto Argonauts (officially the Toronto Argonaut Football Club and colloquially known as the Argos) are a professional Canadian football team based in Toronto, Ontario. The Argonauts compete in the East Division (CFL), East Division of t ...

, and

Hamilton Tiger-Cats The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are a professional Canadian football team based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. They are currently members of the East Division (CFL), East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The Tiger-Cats play their home game ...

. He is a two-time

Grey Cup The Grey Cup () is both the championship game of the Canadian Football League (CFL) and the trophy awarded to the victorious team playing in the namesake championship of professional Canadian football. The game is contested between the winners ...

champion with the Argonauts and was named a CFL All-Star three times and CFL East Division All-Star seven times. He was also named the CFL's Most Outstanding Offensive Lineman in . He played

CIS Football U Sports football is the highest level of amateur play of Canadian football and operates under the auspices of U Sports, Canada's governing body for university sports. Twenty-seven teams from Canadian universities are divided into four athlet ...

for the

McMaster Marauders The McMaster Marauders are the athletic teams that represent McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Athletics at McMaster is currently managed by the university's student affairs, under their athletics & recreation d ...

as a

defensive lineman In gridiron football, a lineman is a player who specializes in play at the line of scrimmage. The linemen of the team currently in possession of the ball are the offensive line (OL), while linemen on the opposing team are the defensive line (D ...

University career

Van Zeyl played for the McMaster Marauders football team from

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

as a

defensive tackle A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that typically lines up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the Guard (American football), offensive guards; however, he may also line up opposite one of the offensive Tackle (gridir ...

. He recorded 42 defensive tackles, 11 sacks, and one forced fumble over his tenure there. He was named a 2007 CIS First-Team All-Canadian and the Marauder Lineman of the Year.

Professional career

Montreal Alouettes

Van Zeyl was drafted in the third round with the 18th overall pick in the 2007 CFL Draft by the

and attended training camp with the Alouettes but returned to McMaster in August. He noted that the Alouettes intention was for him to remain as a defensive lineman as a professional player, which was his preferred position. He re-joined Montreal in October and remained on the

practice roster In gridiron football, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. They serve as extra players during the team's practices, often as part of the scou ...

for the remainder of the 2007 Montreal Alouettes season. Van Zeyl attended the 2008 Montreal Alouettes training camp and was again added to the practice roster but was released on September 3, 2008.

Toronto Argonauts

On September 5, 2008, Van Zeyl signed with the

as a free agent and was assigned to the Argos practice roster. He was converted to the offensive side of the ball as an offensive lineman and remained on the practice roster for the rest of the year.Van Zeyl Signs Three-Year Extension in Toronto
/ref> He re-signed with Toronto on December 3, 2008, for the 2009 Toronto Argonauts season but was released at the end of training camp. He was re-signed to the

on June 27, 2009. He was signed to the active roster on August 27 and dressed in his first professional regular season game on August 28, 2009, in a loss to the

Calgary Stampeders The Calgary Stampeders are a professional Canadian football team based in Calgary, Alberta. The Stampeders compete in the West Division (CFL), West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The club plays its home games at McMahon Stadium a ...

. He got his first playing opportunity on October 16, 2009, when starting right tackle, Brian Ramsay, suffered an injury and Van Zeyl was pressed into action. He started his first professional game on October 23, 2009, against the

as well as the last two games of the season. In 2010, Van Zeyl entered the season as the team's starting right offensive tackle and played in 14 regular season games, missing four due to injury. He recorded his first career reception on a 10-yard pass from Cleo Lemon in the Labour Day Classic on September 6, 2010, but was injured on the play and had to sit out the next game. He started at right tackle in both playoff games for the Argonauts that year, which were his first post-season starts. He played and started in 15 regular season games in 2011 as the Argonauts missed the playoffs for the third time in four years. During the 2012 Toronto Argonauts season, Van Zeyl started 17 regular season games at right tackle and recorded his first special teams tackle in week 4 against the

Winnipeg Blue Bombers The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are a professional Canadian football team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The Blue Bombers compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West Division (CFL), West division. They play thei ...

. He started in all three post-season games, including the 100th Grey Cup where he earned his first

championship in the Argonauts' victory. In 2013, Van Zeyl started 17 regular season games and one playoff game, primarily at right guard, en route to being named a CFL All-Star for the first time in his career. On July 8, 2014, Van Zeyl signed an extension through the 2016 season with the Argonauts. He started in all 17 regular season games that he played in during the 2014 season and was named an East All-Star at offensive tackle. In 2015, he played in only 14 regular season games, starting 13, while also starting the East Semi-Final game. In 2016, he started all 18 regular season games for the first time in his career and was again named an East All-Star at offensive tackle. During the offseason, Van Zeyl signed another contract extension with the Argonauts on January 13, 2017, through to the 2019 CFL season. He played and started in 16 regular season games for the team and was named a CFL All-Star for the second time in his career. He started at right tackle for both post-season games, including his second

championship in the Argonauts'

105th Grey Cup The 105th Grey Cup was played on November 26, 2017, between the Calgary Stampeders and the Toronto Argonauts at TD Place Stadium in Ottawa, Ontario. In a re-match of the 100th Grey Cup, the Argonauts won the game 27–24, winning their 17th cham ...

victory over the Stampeders. He started 17 games at right tackle in

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

and was once again named an East Division All-Star. In a reportedly salary cap-related move, the Argonauts released Van Zeyl on the day before the start of training camp on May 18, 2019.

Hamilton Tiger-Cats

On the same day of his Toronto release, the

signed Van Zeyl to a two-year contract on May 18, 2019. He started 17 regular season games and two post-season games for the Tiger-Cats and was named a CFL All-Star for the third time in his career. He re-signed with the Tiger-Cats on January 12, 2021. Van Zeyl played in seven games for the Ticats during the 2021 season. On July 26, 2022, midway through the 2022 season, the Tiger-Cats placed Van Zeyl on the six-game injured list. He only played in six games during the 2022 season. On May 30, 2023, Van Zeyl was activated from the injured veteran list. At 39 years of age he was the oldest player in the league. He began the season on the injured reserve list, but was activated on June 21, 2023, before the team's third game. Van Zeyl played in six regular season games in

2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...

as a backup offensive lineman. On April 6, 2024, Van Zeyl announced his retirement from professional football. In his career, he appeared in 192 regular season games, 12 playoff games, and four

games, including two championship victories.

References

External links

Hamilton Tiger-Cats bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Van Zeyl, Chris 1983 births Living people Canadian football offensive linemen McMaster Marauders football players Montreal Alouettes players Sportspeople from the Regional Municipality of Niagara Players of Canadian football from Ontario Toronto Argonauts players Hamilton Tiger-Cats players