Keenan Allen

At 31 years old, Keenan Allen has this physical status:

Keenan Alexander Allen (born April 27, 1992) is an American football wide receiver for the Los Angeles Chargers of the National Football League (NFL).

He played college football for the California Golden Bears before leaving after his junior year.

He was drafted by the Chargers in the third round of the 2013 NFL Draft.

Allen won multiple rookie honors after setting Chargers' records for receptions and receiving yards by a rookie.

In 2017, he was named the NFL Comeback Player of the Year.

Early years

Allen attended Grimsley Senior High School and then Northern Guilford High School in Greensboro, North Carolina, where he played football, basketball, and ran track. In football, he was a standout on both sides of the ball for the Nighthawks football team. He was a 2009 high school All-American, selected by USA Today and Parade, and also played in U.S. Army All-American Bowl, returning one punt for 33 yards as well as one kickoff also for 33 yards.

In track & field, Allen was a state qualifier in the long jump (top-jump of 7.01 meters). As a senior, he competed in sprints. He took 24th in the 400-meter dash event at the 2010 PTFCA State Meet, with a time of 51.60 seconds. He also competed in the 100-meter dash, recording a personal-best time of 11.2 seconds. In addition, he was also timed at 4.56 seconds in the 40-yard dash.

Allen was regarded as a five-star recruit by Rivals.com and Scout.com, and was widely considered the top defensive back in the nation. Allen initially committed to the University of Alabama to play safety, but switched his commitment to the University of California, Berkeley in order to play wide receiver and play with his half brother, Zach Maynard.

Personal life

Allen is Lumbee and is the younger half-brother of quarterback Zach Maynard, who also played at Cal. The two combined for the longest pass play in school history when they hooked up on a 90-yard score against the Washington Huskies. They share a mother, Dorie Maynard-Lang, and Maynard's biological father, Scott Lang, is Allen's stepfather. Allen's cousin, Maurice Harris, is a former NFL wide receiver, with the two being teammates in high school and college.

Allen is childhood friend of former cornerback David Amerson, who was selected in the 2013 NFL Draft by the Washington Redskins.

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College career

Allen played for the University of California, Berkeley, where he began as a wide receiver for the California Golden Bears football team from 2010 to 2012. He had 46 receptions for 490 yards and five touchdowns as a rookie in the 2010 season. Allen had a career-best 98 catches for 1,343 yards as a sophomore in the 2011 season. He had 61 receptions for 737 yards and six touchdowns as a junior in the 2012 season. He left Cal after his junior season, receiving a school record 205 passes for 2,570 yards (third in school history) and 25 touchdowns (seventh).

Professional career

Allen did not work out at the NFL Scouting Combine during the 2012 season, but did run routes on Cal's Pro Day because of a posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) sprain. Draft pundits named Keenan Allen as one of the top receivers in the 2013 NFL draft, with the hope that he will be drafted in the second half of the first round.

Allen attended his own pro day on April 9, 2013, where he displayed his route-running abilities and catching abilities to dozens of scouts and journalists. He was not at peak performance during the 40-yard dash due to the aforementioned PCL sprain, resulting in a 4.71-second run. Allen said he was only at 80% fitness on the pro day. This resulted in a decrease in his predicted draft position.

Allen was drafted in the third round of the 2013 NFL Draft, 76th overall, by the San Diego Chargers, but the team already had a solid lineup at the wide receiver position. He was the highest-drafted wide receiver from Cal since DeSean Jackson in 2008. Allen had been on GM Tom Telesco's radar for a while. Allen enjoyed one of his career's most active days of his career in 2011, smashing a career-best 13 passes for 160 yards at San Francisco's AT&T Park.

Allen agreed to a four-year, $2.81 million deal with the Chargers, which included a $613,800 signing bonus.

Allen was unable at some points during training camp. Antonio Gates, a teammate and veteran tight end, imagined that Allen would play alongside Eddie Royal, Vincent Brown, Malcom Floyd, and Danario Alexander in 2013. Although Alexander sustained a season-ending injury in the preseason, Allen did not participate in any offensive plays in San Diego's season-opening loss to the Houston Texans. He was accustomed to being a reserve player but wanted to return to college to complete his degree. Floyd started playing time against the Philadelphia Eagles the following week after suffering a season-ending injury. Allen played his first 100-yard game against the Oakland Raiders on October 6, 2013, totaling six catches for 115 yards and a touchdown. Allen made nine catches for 107 yards and a touchdown against the Indianapolis Colts on Monday Night Football. With 61 weeks remaining in the regular season, he tied for receptions in a rookie season, trouncing LaDainian Tomlinson.

Allen led the team with 1,046 passing yards, which also tied for the Chargers' rookie record of 1,001, which was also broken by John Jefferson in 1978. Only five other rookies had more receiving yards in league history, while his eight touchdowns tied him for third all-time with six other rookies. He also led the Chargers to their first five 100-yard games in a season, beating Prince George for the team's lead in touchdowns. Allen was named NFL Rookie of the Year by Sporting News four times during the year, beating runner-up Eddie Lacy. Although the Pro Football Writers Association (PFWA) named running back Lacy as their 2013 Rookie of the Year, the Pro Football Writers Association (PFWA) also named Allen as their Offensive Rookie of the Year. The Associated Press announced Allen as runner-up to Lacy for the Offensive Rookie of the Year, which was deemed by the NFL to be the league's highest honor. Allen was named Pepsi NEXT NFL Rookie of the Year in a nationwide vote by fans. Allen's being drafted in the third round was a robbery by San Diego; seven other wide receivers were drafted before him. In December, ESPN announced that "Allen has been doing like a first-round talent." The Chargers qualified for the playoffs for the first time this season. They defeated the Cincinnati Bengals by a score of 27–10. Allen scored two touchdowns on a comeback attempt in the fourth quarter of a 24–17 loss to the Denver Broncos, when they advanced to the Divisional Round. He had six receptions for 142 yards, marking his second rookie in NFL history to reach 100 receiving yards and score two touchdowns in a playoff game.

Allen had a career-high of 10 receptions for 135 yards in a 33-14 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 4 of the 2014 season. He had two touchdowns and 121 passing yards against the Baltimore Ravens in Week 12, which aided in the Chargers' victory. Since suffering a fractured right collarbone against the Denver Broncos in Week 15, he missed the remaining two games of the season. He finished the season with 77 receptions for 783 yards and four touchdowns.

Allen had 15 receptions for 166 yards in a season-opening 33–28 win over the Detroit Lions, tying Kellen Winslow's franchise record for most receptions in a game. Allen's first week, he had trouble getting open, throwing two receptions for 16 yards. In a losing effort against the Minnesota Vikings last week, Allen blocked both of the Chargers touchdowns and had 12 receptions for 133 yards. Allen had four receptions for 72 yards and a diving touchdown grab against the Cleveland Browns.

Allen would miss the remainder of the season after suffering from a kidney injury on November 3, according to the Chargers. He had 67 receptions for 725 receiving yards and four touchdowns in the 2015 season, adding to his record of 67 receptions for 725 yards and four touchdowns.

Allen agreed to a four-year, $45 million deal extension with the Chargers on June 10, 2016. Allen was down on the ground in pain with less than two minutes to go in the first half and was carted off the field. He was diagnosed with an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tear and missed the remainder of the season.

Allen returned from his injury and had five receptions for 35 yards and a touchdown in the 24-21 loss on Monday Night Football against the Denver Broncos on September 11, 2017. Allen had nine receptions for 100 yards against the Miami Dolphins on Week 2, his 13th game with at least 100 yards and his first game since Week 6 of the 2015 season. He had 12 receptions for 159 receiving yards and two touchdowns in Week 11, defeating the Buffalo Bills by 54–24. Allen had 172 receiving yards and a touchdown on Thanksgiving Day, when the Chargers defeated the Dallas Cowboys on Week 12. Allen made history by winning three games in a row, with ten more interceptions, 100+ receiving yards, and at least one touchdown. Allen was named to his first Pro Bowl on December 19, 2017. Allen played in 16 regular season games for 1,393 yards and six touchdowns, his first appearance in the sport. His 102 receptions ranked fourth in the league. For the first time in Chargers history, he defeated LaDainian Tomlinson (100) for the most time in a season. Lance Alworth's 1,393 passing yards were second in the league behind Antonio Brown and Julio Jones and his second most in a season in Chargers history. After an impressive 2017 season, he was named as the NFL Comeback Player of the Year after returning from a torn ACL in 2016. He was ranked 41st among his peers on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2018.

Allen sparked the season with eight receptions for 108 yards and a touchdown against the Kansas City Chiefs. He had six receptions for 124 yards against the Seattle Seahawks on November 4, the Seattle Seahawks. Following the Seahawks' game, he went on a streak of five games in a row with a receiving touchdown. Against the Pittsburgh Steelers, he played his best game in that stretch: a 14-catch, 148-yard match. He had 97 receptions for 1,196 receiving yards and six touchdowns during the 2018 season. In the 23–17 victory over the Baltimore Ravens, he had four receptions for 37 yards in the Wild Card Round. He had two receptions for 75 yards and a touchdown in the Divisional Round loss to the New England Patriots. He received his second Pro Bowl nomination. He was ranked 38th by his peers on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2019.

Allen completed eight passes for 123 yards and his first touchdown of the season in the 30–24 overtime victory over the Indianapolis Colts. The Chargers lost 27-20, with Allen passing for 183 yards and two touchdowns against the Houston Texans two weeks later. He had a franchise-record 104 catches for 1,199 yards and six touchdowns on the season. For the third straight season, he received a Pro Bowl nomination. On the NFL Top 100 Players of 2020, he was ranked 77th by his peers.

Allen signed a four-year, $80.1 million deal extension with the Chargers on September 5, 2020. In Week 3, he had 13 receptions for 132 receiving yards and one touchdown. In Week 7 against the Jacksonville Jaguars, he had ten receptions for 125 yards in the 39-29 victory. Allen was intercepted for 103 yards and a touchdown against the Las Vegas Cowboys in Week 9 for 103 yards and a touchdown. Allen had 16 catches for 145 yards and a touchdown against the New York Jets in Week 11 for 145 yards and a touchdown. By the Chargers on December 31, 2020, he was on the reserve/COVID-19 list and activated on January 7, 2021. For the fourth straight season, he earned a Pro Bowl nomination. On the NFL Top 100 Players of 2021, he ranked 55th out of his fellow players.

Allen had 106 receptions for 1,128 receiving yards and six touchdowns in the 2021 season. He had four games with at least 100 receiving yards. For the fifth straight season, he received a Pro Bowl nomination. He was ranked 35th by his peers on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2022.

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