Chargers star set to have bounce-back season

Chargers wide receiver Keenan Allen is entering his 11th season in the NFL. As a 21-year old rookie in 2013, Allen was immediately then-quarterback Philip Rivers' top option at receiver, and has remained the top option in the Chargers offense ever since — amassing 796 catches and 9,287 receiving yards in that span.

A kidney injury in 2015 and a torn ACL in 2016 caused Allen to miss 23 games between those two seasons, only missing an additional two games up until last year. A hamstring injury in L.A.'s Week 1 win over the Raiders caused Allen to miss the second half of that game, seven additional regular-season games, plus the second half in Week 7.

Missing roughly eight games in your age-30 season on a team that just drafted a receiver in the first round is sure to make antennas go up, both in the building and for Allen himself. Allen told reporters as much on Sunday, when he was asked if missing those games last year is giving him a little "extra juice" this year to prove he can still play:

"Absolutely man, I think I still got a chip on my shoulder. Still something to prove," Allen said. "Obviously, with the Madden ratings coming out, obviously got to go out and prove some more stuff."

Allen's "Madden" rating in this year's edition of the game is an 89, tied with San Francisco's Deebo Samuel and Seattle's Tyler Lockett for the 13th-highest mark among receivers.

Going into his age-31 season, "Madden" is correct to rate Allen where it did. And Allen is likely to go out and prove to himself and others that he still has it...because he does.

Despite missing all that time last season, Allen still caught 66 passes for 752 yards. Extrapolated out over an entire 17-game season, those numbers would translate to approximately 125 catches for 1,420 yards (an imperfect translation in the reality of the NFL, but still significant nonetheless).

Furthermore, Pro Football Focus' metrics reveal some compelling data points as they relate to Allen's 2022 season: He had the 11th-highest grade and was 15th in yards per route run among all receivers and tight ends — the latter of which being important because it more accurately predicts production week-to-week than other receiving metrics. He also didn't drop a single pass — including in a span from Week 11 to Week 18 in which he averaged 10.375 targets per game.

While he may be at the bottom of the tier, Allen is still an elite receiver. And he's about to play in a revamped offense under a forward-thinking play-caller in Kellen Moore with an elite, young quarterback in Justin Herbert.

Maybe a secondary concern of Allen's is his status on L.A.'s roster in 2024. The Chargers are $50.42M over the cap for 2024, which is the final year on Allen's deal. He carries a $34.72 cap hit, none of which is guaranteed.

Allen is out to prove he's worth that number. Unless last year's injury issue becomes the norm, he's likely to prove he's still in the upper echelon of receivers in the NFL.