Dresden Monarchs re-sign All Europe LB AJ Wentland

With the German Football League playoffs looming, the Dresden Monarchs have announced the return of All-Europe linebacker AJ Wentland.

Wentland spent the 2021 season with Austria’s Swarco Raiders, helping them win their eighth Austrian Football League title and third in a row (excluding the 2020 COVID season). He finished as the second-leading tackler on the Raiders, winding up with 22 total tackles

He spent the 2020 pandemic-shortened Maple League season in Finland helping the Kuopio Steelers win their first-ever Finnish championship.

After missing the first two games of the season that year, Wentland went on a tear, finishing with 23 tackles in three games along with 4.5 tackles for loss and a sack. In the playoffs and championship game, he added another 13.5 tackles in helping lead his team to their first-ever Finnish title.

Before arriving in Finland, Wentland was the heart of the Dresden Monarchs defense in the German Football League for two seasons. As he did in 2018, he led the league from wire to wire in 2019, with 205 tackles, averaging 13 a game.  He had 17 in Dresden’s 42-14 win over the Kiel Baltic Hurricanes early in the year and 16 in the Monarchs quarterfinal victory over the Marburg Mercenaries. His 205 tackles was one shy of his own record of 206 tackles in 2018.

The 6’3″, 225 lb native of Rockford, Illinois was a standout two-time All American linebacker with the McKendree University Bearcats (NCAA, Division II) where he was also a three-time All GLVC (Great Lakes Valley Conference) linebacker. Over three years he amassed a total of 412 tackles including 145 in 11 games in his senior year, 2017. He also had two touchdowns, three interceptions, and six forced fumbles.

According to the Monarchs, Wentland will also be working in a coaching capacity with the team.