Jared Allen has said that the surgery to repair his torn labrum, which we already knew about, was the first surgery he’s had during his entire professional career. In fact, he said it was the first surgery he’s had since getting his tonsils out at the age of five.
According to Tom Pelissero, however, Allen got two surgeries done on the same day.
In addition to the torn labrum, Allen had a “minor” knee issue taken care of on the same day, and is expected to be ready for June’s minicamp.
Allen will be 31 years old in a couple of days and is entering the final year of his contract. He is set to make a base salary of $14.28 million, with a cap hit of $17.06 million, and these facts have led some to wonder if Allen could be a candidate for a contract extension or even as a trade possibility.
The free agent market this offseason has been flooded with big name veteran pass rushers, and the Draft is very talented and deep in this area, so it seems highly unlikely the Vikings would find any offers of interest on the trade market.
Allen’s age and injuries, as well as the overabundant market, may cause the Vikings to balk at the idea of giving Allen any sort of lucrative extension. An extension would surely mean they have to invest more guaranteed money into Allen, or else he would have little motivation to sign it, and the Vikings may just not feel comfortable with the idea of making such a commitment.
The idea of convincing Allen to take any sort of pay cut is laughable, considering the only reason he is a Viking in the first place was the stubborn stance he took with the Chiefs after they applied the franchise tag to him so many years ago, and he would surely have all the leverage in this situation, as well.
With Everson Griffen and Brian Robison still on the team, the Vikings could theoretically decide to release Allen and begin the process of developing younger talent, but I just don’t see that happening despite the salary cap benefits that would result in the move. Allen is a beloved figure in Minnesota and his dip in productivity last season has, by many, been attributed to his shoulder issue.
Don’t be surprised if Allen plays out his current contract, under his current salary, and then decides to test the market in 2014 when maybe defensive end options won’t be as plentiful for needy teams.
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http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2013/03/27/team-by-team-cap-space-as-of-march-26/
Vikings: $5.1 million.
says it might not be accurate
Well have to rework some contacts to make this season work especially if we want Winfield back and/or Urlacher(or any other fa for that matter).
Nice blog Adam,
My 2 cents…
Just one player was invited to wine/dine and wow Greg Jennings! No, it wasn’t our franchise QB, nor was it the best running back in the NFL, Adrian Peterson… it was our dynamic team leader Jared Allen that was chosen to seal the deal in landing Jennings.
I will NOT be betting against JA having a big year this season. Allen still has plenty of gas in the tank to take a run at the sack record.
The Vikings have some cap room right now… no need to be in a hurry. I have complete confidence that when the time is right, Jared will restructure if/as needed.
Spielman likes to keep people guessing around draft time anyway. Restructuring/extending Allen and resigning Winfield could show his hand as to who he covets in the first round.
Many mocks have the Vikings looking at CB and DE in the first round… that might be exactly what Spielman wants teams to think so that he can land the DT, ILB or WR that he really wants.
I am not sure how much longer Jared Allen will be a Viking… but this is one fan that has NOT been disappointed… keep roping cowboy!
I completely agree with you Carl. Jared Allen has been nothing but a stud since the Vikes traded for him and also has been a great team mate. Since he apparently had a couple of injuries, I also think he is due for another good year. You are right on about Spielman, he is pretty crafty when is comes to this time of the season. Just hope we have another solid draft like what we had last year.
they're about the same age, and like jennings, allen has charisma and has a salesman's appeal, AD and ponder don't have that, so it makes sense to use him to sell jennings on joining the vikings, and allen should have a good year, as he'll want to set himself up for his next contract
Just a guess here, but I'm thinking Allen may have just been tin town rehabbing while the other guys weren't. Could've just been a convenience thing instead of a specific choice.
Adam, you are correct. JA was in town getting his shoulder looked at be team doctors and they were checking on his progress. I read that (if my memory serves me correct) he was in town the day before Jennings was supposed to visit.
Good point Adam, but if the Vikings are uneasy about any issues around Jared Allen's final year of his contract or if they are questioning Allen's long term desire to remain a Viking... I don't believe they would have opened the door for him to help sell Greg Jennings.
Asking a player that is in the final year of his contract to help attract a high profile FA is a risky ask. It doesn't happen every day in the NFL!
It just leads me to believe that Jared Allen and the Vikings are communicating well this off season. I find that to be refreshing in an age where players cry/hold-out in the final year of a contract.
Even if JA was in the right place at the right time to help land Jenning... I am still going to give him an "atta-boy"!
And, I will also give him a "Gold Star" for hanging around Minnesota in the offseason!
allen doesn't even come to the off season workouts if he doesn't absolutely have to, and they're spending a ton of dough in signing jennings, so i don't buy the notion that allen was just in town rehabbing, he could've done that at home in AZ. do you know how much prep work companies do before they go in to make a presentation on a multi-million dollar deal?
I know this is looking a bit far into the future, but if K-Will and JA are in the final year of their contracts, the Vikes really will not have any huge contracts for cap purposes next year besides AP. I believe (an correct me if I am wrong) that we should have a lot of cap space next year.
Jarred Allen is over paid right now. I don't care how much I love to watch him play for the Vikings, he still is over paid. Some Vikings fans are such homers or purple coolaid drinkers, they can't focus on the big picture. Getting better as a TEAM, and going to the superbowl. Kevin Williams and Jarred Allen need to restructure their contracts. Both are being over paid.
Yes, I am a homer for Jared Allen... he is the Vikings single season sack leader on the field, and off the field he calls Minnesota home. Allen serves as an advocate for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, and raises funds through his "Sack Diabetes" program. He is also very active with our military overseas. JA created a charity call Jared Allen Homes 4 Wounded Warriors. He has also donated thousands to animal shelters.
If the Vikings are going to over pay someone... they picked the right guy!
I do like me some purple kool-aid
Kevin Williams actually has two seasons left at $7.5, and he seemed open to restructuring in some early off-season interviews, so I am surprised they haven't done something with him. As for Allen, I'm not really surprised they haven't done anything with his deal. They probably don't want to offer him an extension the first season that his body is showing some wear and tear, and that's the only way to change his cap #. He's not going to voluntarily take a pay cut, and why should he? The team probably wants to see him get through this next year healthy and productive before offering an extension, and Allen may want to see what kind of season they can put together before committing the last few years of his career here. For all we know he could be planning to retire after this year, he doesn't strike me as a dude who would walk away with productive years left in front of him but he's started a family and has certainly made enough money to live a happy life.
I know I'm in the minority but a $17,000,000 cap hit when we have Everson Griffen on the sidelines? Antoine was much more effective last year year (IMO) and his cap hit wasn't 1/2 that and look where he ended up. Spielman doesn't strike me as the kind of GM that lets emotions influence his decisions and they are going to have a lot of draft picks to sign. If it wasn't for the public relations disaster then I would think releasing him would be a no-brainer - assuming he won't restructure. Zygi on the other hand seems to be pretty attached to his toys and Jared is one of his favorites. He's not going anywhere this year but my gut says we have seen the last of the force that was Jared Allen (I would like to be very wrong though).
Its the last year of his contact, every contract is over inflated on the last year. If/when he resigns he will be underpaid the first few years and make up for it on the last year/2.