Lyle Sendlein Lyle Sendlein ( born March 18 , 1984 ) is an American football center for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League . He was signed by the Cardinals as an undrafted free agent in 2007 . He played college football at Texas . Early years . Coached by Ron Estabrook at Chaparral High School in Scottsdale , Arizona , Sendlein was a four - year letter winner and three - year starter as a prepster . He started varsity football early at a great school for football and became a first - team all - region choice at offensive tackle as a sophomore . He started at defensive tackle and linebacker as a senior , linebacker as a junior and offensive tackle as a sophomore . Sendlein also helped lead team to back - to - back Arizona 4A State Championships in 1999 - 2000 and a 28 - game winning streak . He became a first - team all - state , all - region and all - city selection as a senior he posted 110 tackles , six sacks , three fumble recoveries ( one returned for a TD ) and a 29 - yard interception return for a TD that year , he also had 21 tackles , two sacks and a 29 - yard INT return for a TD against rival Saguaro in 2001 . He earned second - team all - state and first - team all - region and all - city honors as a junior . Sendlein was also named the Valley ' s 2000 Defensive Player of the Year . He racked up 157 tackles that year , his top game of his junior season was a 19 - tackle performance against the Saguaro Sabrecats . College career . Sendlein played in 50 games while at Texas and he started in his final 26 games . He was a two - time all - conference performer as center in the Big 12 . He started for the 2005 National Championship team and helped the Longhorns set an NCAA single - season record with 652 total points scored and a UT single - season record with 6 , 657 total offensive yards . He earned a degree in liberal arts in December 2006 . Professional career . Arizona Cardinals . Sendlein went undrafted in the 2007 NFL Draft , but signed with the Arizona Cardinals as an undrafted free agent . On his signing with the Cardinals , Sendlein said , " I had about 20 to 25 teams call to check on my status , but my agent and I felt like Arizona would be a good fit . " said Sendlein . This will be a homecoming for Sendlein since he played for Scottsdale Chaparral as a prepster . Sendlein started only 2 games as a rookie in 2007 . He became the starting center ( American football ) for Arizona in his sophomore year , and has maintained that position ever since , without missing a game for 3 years ( 2008 to 2010 ) . The Cardinals reached the 2008 - 09 NFL playoffs with a won - lost record of 9 - 7 , head coach Ken Whisenhunt ' s second year , scoring 427 points ( 26 . 7 points / game ) , 3rd in the NFL . The Cardinals beat the Atlanta Falcons in a wild card game , amassing 271 net passing yards with Kurt Warner as quarterback . They then defeated the Carolina Panthers with 215 net passing yards in the divisional round and the Philadelphia Eagles with 267 net passing yards in the NFC championship game . However , they lost Super Bowl XLIII to the Pittsburgh Steelers despite 374 net passing yards . Throughout the playoffs , Sendlein provided excellent pass protection with Reggie Wells and Deuce Lutui at guards and Mike Gandy and Levi Brown at tackles . In the 2009 - 10 NFL playoffs , with the same offensive line except for Jeremy Bridges replacing Gandy at left tackle , the Cardinals beat the Green Bay Packers in a wild card game , with 375 net passing yards , but lost in the divisional round to the New Orleans Saints . Without Warner at quarterback , they missed the playoffs in 2010 . Personal . Lyle Sendlein is the son of former UT and NFL player Robin Sendlein .