Sad news befell the Dallas Cowboys and NFL community on Monday, with the announcement that Hall of Fame offensive lineman Larry Allen had passed away at age 52 on Sunday. According to Ari Meirov on X, Allen was on vacation with his family in Mexico.
Allen, a native of Compton, C.A. was a second round draft choice by the Cowboys out of Division-II Sonoma State University in 1994 after playing his first two college seasons at Butte College, a community college in Oroville, C.A. The versatile Allen made seven consecutive pro bowls from 1995-2001 while being named first team All-Pro in each of those seasons. As a rookie, he started 10 games at right tackle before moving inside to right guard from 1995-1997. Playing left tackle in 1998, he made yet another pro bowl, before moving to left guard exclusively for the remainder of his career.
He also made four consecutive pro bowls from 2003-2006, the last of which he enjoyed as a San Francisco 49er, the team that he spent his last two NFL seasons with in 2005 and 2006.
The 6 foot 3 inch, 335 pound Allen was renowned for his strength, famously handling Hall of Fame defensive linemen John Randle and Warren Sapp. At the 2006 Pro Bowl Skills Competition, Allen put up 43 repetitions of 225 pounds on the bench press.
Allen is unquestionably the best offensive lineman in Cowboys’ history and one of the best in NFL history. Hall of Fame head coach Bill Parcells, who coached Allen in Dallas from 2003-2005, joined Allen as part of the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s 2013 class. At the time, Parcells said that Allen was one of the best three guards he had ever seen along with Mike Munchak and John Hannah.
Allen was a member of the All-Decade teams for the 1990s and 2000s. He was ranked the 95th greatest player in NFL history by NFL Network.
He is survived by his wife, two daughters, and one son.
Comments