For a second consecutive year, former Vikings defensive end Jared Allen has made the cut as a finalist for induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
In his second year of eligibility, Allen is one of 15 modern-era finalists. The list was cut down from 26 semifinalists on Thursday evening.
The Class of 2022 will be announced during the NFL Honors show on February 10th at 8 p.m. central, a few days before the Super Bowl. Potential inductees need 80 percent of the vote to get in. Typically, between four and eight new members are enshrined each year.
Last year's class included Peyton Manning, Calvin Johnson Jr., Charles Woodson, Alan Faneca, Drew Pearson, and John Lynch.
Allen figures to have a decent shot this year.
If he does get in, Allen would become the 23rd former Viking to reach the Hall of Fame and the first since Steve Hutchinson in 2020.
One of the most feared pass rushers in the NFL from 2004 to 2013, Allen's 136 career sacks are tied for 16th in league history. He spent his first four seasons with the Chiefs, then spent the next six seasons with the Vikings after being traded to Minnesota. Allen racked up 85.5 sacks in those six years, which ranks sixth in franchise history. That included a 22-sack season in 2011, which is the Vikings single-season record and just one sack shy of the NFL record.
Allen then had stints with the Bears and Panthers before signing a one-day contract to retire as a Viking in 2016.
“I think my career speaks for itself,” Allen told the Pioneer Press in September 2020. “I think the writing’s on the wall and absolutely I think I competed at a level that’s Hall-of-Fame caliber. I think my stats are my stats. When I played, no one had more sacks than me. I got a text the other day that I was one of the top five for fastest sacks to 100. Everybody that’s above me or [just] below me on the list is in the Hall of Fame, so I think the body of work speaks for itself."
Among the five players ahead of Allen on the Vikings' all-time sack list, four — Alan Page, Carl Eller, Chris Doleman, and John Randle — are in the HOF. It remains shocking that the fifth, Jim Marshall, isn't in as well.
Congratulations to Jared, who will hopefully make the final cut in February.
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