The Frankfurt Galaxy of the European League of Football have definitely shored up their offensive line with the signing of former Tirol Raiders, CFL and D1 Danish offensive lineman Steven Nielsen.
With the addition, the Galaxy have definitely beefed up protection for newly-signed quarterback Luke Zahradka.
The huge 6’8 315-pound offensive lineman spent the 2023 season playing for the Raiders but the previous seven seasons playing at the NCAA D1 level, the NFL, and the CFL.
The 26-year-old is originally from Dragoer, Denmark but played his high school football at La Lumiere High School in La Porte, Indiana. From there, he earned a football scholarship to Eastern Michigan University (NCAA D1). The Danish offensive lineman started 49 games for the Eagles between 2016 and 2019, playing both tackle and guard nearing All conference honors in the process.
Nielsen joined the Jacksonville Jaguars as an undrafted free agent in 2020 but was waived following training camp. Nielsen was then picked up by the Canadian Football League’s Edmonton Elks as the second overall pick in the 2021 Global Draft. Nielsen played in 30 games for the Elks starting five CFL games, including starting the final four games of the 2021 season at right tackle.
Second pick in the last CFL Global Draft, the 🇩🇰Danish Steven Nielsen (@steven060696 ) made his start debut for Edmonton Elks in a match against the Montreal Alouettes. He was the Elks' RT starter. pic.twitter.com/KRllBEPrNh
— ALL22 Global (@all22global) August 17, 2021
The massive Scandinavian’s move from the CFL to the ELF last year was excellent for the European League of Football as it attracted the attention of other high-caliber offensive linemen.
Now with Nielsen, the Galaxy get an instant upgrade and a pro-ready blocker who will help the team get back to the championship game after missing out the last two seasons. Frankfurt won the title in the ELF’s inaugural season, 2021.