Jared Allen thought his NFL career was over before it even got started, but ended up in Canton.
The legendary defensive end will join Eric Allen, Sterling Sharpe and Antonio Gates in the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday.
It saw fans reflect on an iconic football journey for a man who was a character on and off the field as the Los Angeles Chargers hammered the Detroit Lions.
Why did Jared Allen wear No. 69?
A fourth-round pick out of Idaho State in the 2004 NFL Draft, the Kansas City Chiefs handed Allen the No. 69 jersey.
There were two problems — the number itself and the fact that, with 10 retired jerseys, the Chiefs were forced to double up and hand an O-lineman the same shirt.
“They gave me 69 out of college, and there was a fat o-lineman that had a 69, and I was just like, ‘Oh, tight. I have to share a number with somebody. It can only be one of us, and I can’t get cut for this guy.’ And I was like, ‘This is a gross number,” Allen revealed.
“They gave me an o-lineman number. They’re definitely cutting me.
“And so I make the team. And [former Chiefs defensive line coach] Bob Karmelowicz and our equipment guy came up to me and said, ‘Hey, why don’t you change your number? You want a 90s number now?’
“Bob had a raspy voice and said, ‘You’re an old-school player. That’s an old-school number. You keep it and make it cool.’ I just wanted to play, so I was like, ‘My coach tells me to keep the number, I’m going to keep the number.'”
Allen grew to love his cheeky number and wore it throughout his NFL career, which also brought it to the Minnesota Vikings, Chicago Bears and Carolina Panthers.
Who holds the NFL sack record?
It was as a Viking that Allen will be remembered.
He set the franchise’s single-season sack record with 22 in the 2011 campaign, but claims he was robbed of an even more historic accomplishment.
TJ Watt and Michael Strahan share the all-time NFL high with 22.5, but Allen is adamant that he had 23.
“The reality is, I hold the 23 sack record. It’s 23 not TJ Watt 22 and a half at 17 games, and not Michael Strahan. It’s facts for facts. It’s on film,” he insisted.
“I sacked Aaron Rodgers. They took it from me on Wednesday [after facing the Green Bay Packers on Monday Night Football]. Called it a team sack.
“But if you go back to that Monday night football game, Aaron Rodgers got the ball, went to step up in the pocket, drops the ball, picks it back up, he can still throw the ball. I chase it down, tackle set, give it to me.
“That’s two sacks for the game. Wednesday, they take it back, called it a muff and gave it a team sack. Well, I’m part of the team. I’m the team. I’m the one that physically tackled them, so I should lose the hat to that, right?
“But yeah, if you go back and look, I physically sacked Aaron Rodgers for my 23rd was in my 23rd sack. I had 23 quarterbacks on the ground that year.”
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For the record, Rodgers himself waded into the debate after Allen was nominated.
His verdict — the Vikings icon was robbed.
What did Jared Allen do in retirement?
Allen was a colorful character during his career, sporting mullets, goatees and gaining a reputation as a prankster.
The two-time NFL sack leader retired as a Viking in 2015 and took up curling.
In 2018, the scourge of quarterbacks recruited fellow former pros Marc Bulger, Keith Bulluck, and Michael Roos to form a competitive team and even faced the 2018 Olympic gold-medal winning outfit.
The Olympians — led by skip John Shuster — won 11-3.
Allen competed in the 2024 United States Men’s Curling Championship with Team Ruohonen.
That year, the Texan joined forces with Canadian curlers John Morris, and Jennifer Jones to purchase the Grand Slam of Curling series from Sportsnet.
The four-time First-Team All-Pro also made a foray into Hollywood, starring in a Jackass 3 skit.
Allen was tasked with sacking Johnny Knoxville, who wore his iconic No. 69, and sent the movie star crashing to the turf with a brutal hit.
He later played linebacker as Knoxville ran a route as a receiver.
Predictably, it ended with a sickening collision that left the actor writhing in pain.
“People don’t realise football is a game of physics,” Allen said into the camera. “Speed and velocity equals that.”
You do the math.
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