Jeffrey Allen (born July 1, 1958) is a former American and Canadian football

defensive back In gridiron football, defensive backs (DBs), also called the secondary, are the players on the defensive side of the ball who play farthest back from the line of scrimmage. They are distinguished from the other two sets of defensive players, the ...

. He was drafted in the eight round (212th overall) in the

1980 NFL draft The 1980 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 29–30, 1980, at the New York She ...

by the Miami Dolphins. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

at UC Davis. He also played for the

San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team that played in San Diego from 1961 until the end of the 2016 season, before relocating to Los Angeles, where the franchise had played its inaugural 1960 season. The team is now ...

, and San Francisco 49ers in the National Football League (NFL), as well as one game for the Toronto Argonauts in the Canadian Football League (CFL). He went on to appear in 25 career NFL games, while making nine starts.

Early career

Allen played

at the University of California, Davis for the Aggies. In his final year with the Aggies (1980), he was awarded the Colby E. "Babe" Slater Award, which is awarded to the male athlete of the year.

Professional career

Allen was selected by the Miami Dolphins in the eighth round (212th overall) of the

1980 NFL Draft The 1980 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 29–30, 1980, at the New York She ...

. In his rookie season, Allen played in all 16 regular season games for the Dolphins, where he was used primarily as a cornerback. He remained on the team through the off-season but was waived in mid-August. The Toronto Argonauts were struggling heavily by August 1981 after losing eight consecutive games. Along with five other cut NFL players, Allen was signed in an attempt to improve the team. Allen and Elbert Roberts were expected to replace

Marcellus Greene Marcellus Lamont Greene (born December 12, 1957) is a former American football defensive back who played one season with the Minnesota Vikings in the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Los Angeles Rams in the eleventh round o ...

and Hank Williams. The Argonauts instead started Allen at safety for his CFL debut against the Calgary Stampeders on September 7, 1981. He was released the following week after starting only one game for the Argonauts. The Argonauts later re-signed Allen and traded him to the BC Lions for running back Calvin Murray, although Allen played no games for the Lions. Before the 1982 season, the San Diego Chargers signed Allen. He played in the season opener against the Kansas City Chiefs. The secondary unit was praised for allowing only 3 points despite fielding two new starters, Allen and Andre Young. He went on to start in nine regular season games with the Chargers. Allen intercepted a pass from Terry Bradshaw intended for Lynn Swann in the Chargers' first round playoff win against the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Steel ...

, but the Chargers lost in the second round to the Miami Dolphins. Prior to the 1983 season, the Chargers traded Allen to the San Francisco 49ers for a draft pick, but Allen was cut during the preseason and never played for the 49ers.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Allen, Jeff Living people 1958 births American football cornerbacks Canadian football defensive backs UC Davis Aggies football players Miami Dolphins players Toronto Argonauts players BC Lions players San Diego Chargers players San Francisco 49ers players Players of Canadian football from Indiana Players of American football from Indiana Sportspeople from Richmond, Indiana