Jason Jamar Allen (born July 5, 1983) is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

player who was a

cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover Wide receiver, receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such Play from scrimmage, offensive running plays as sweep ...

in the

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(NFL). He was selected by the

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16th overall of the

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. He played

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Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

. Allen also played for the

Houston Texans The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston. The Texans compete in the National Football League as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team plays its home games at N ...

and

Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team plays its h ...

Early life

Allen earned various honors while playing football at Muscle Shoals High School in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. He was named an

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

n from SuperPrep, PrepStar and Borderwars.com. He was twice a 5A All-State

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offense ...

and was once selected as the

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

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Player of the Year. As a senior, he ran for 1,740 yards and 21

touchdowns A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Scoring a touchdown grants the team that scored it 6 points. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchd ...

while adding 378 yards and three scores receiving. His performance earned him the honor of being the No. 1 player in Alabama by

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and Mobile Register. Allen also lettered in track and

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at Muscle Shoals. He graduated early in January 2001.

College career

Allen was a four-year letterman and three-year starter for the

Tennessee Volunteers The Tennessee Volunteers and Lady Volunteers are the 20 male and female varsity intercollegiate athletics programs that represent the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee. The Volunteers compete in Division I of the National Colleg ...

. He appeared in 43 games with 26 starting, including 12 starts at

safety Safety is the state of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings The word 'safety' entered the English language in the 1 ...

and 14 at

2002

By graduating in January, Allen was able to attend spring practices at the University of Tennessee. He went on to play in 13 games as a true freshman in 2002, finishing with five tackles.

2003

As a starting cornerback in 2003, Allen started 8 of the 13 games in which he appeared, amassing 57 tackles (43 solo), a forced fumble, 2 interceptions, 11 passes defensed, and a blocked kick. His first career interception sealed the win against

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. His breakout came against the

University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, the Capstone, or Bama) is a Public university, public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of ...

, in which he had 12 tackles, a blocked field goal and 2 pass breakups; including the game-sealing one on fourth-and-two in the fifth overtime.

2004

Allen started the first game of the season at cornerback before moving to safety for the final 12 contests. He finished with 123 tackles, which led the SEC while also becoming the first non-

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and typically line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and so back up the defensive linemen. They play closer to the line ...

to lead the team in tackles since individual records began being recorded in 1970. His 88 solo stops were third in the nation (among Division I-A schools). Along with his tackles, he totaled 2 sacks, 3 forced fumbles, a fumble recovery, 2 interceptions and 7 passes defensed during the year. For his performance during the season, Allen was a third-team

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All-America selection, second-team All-SEC Coaches and Associated Press selection, and a

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semifinalist. He also earned

Walter Camp Walter Chauncey Camp (April 7, 1859 – March 14, 1925) was an American college football player and coach, and sports writer known as the "Father of American Football". Among a long list of inventions, he created the sport's line of scrimmage a ...

Division I-A Defensive Player of the Week honors on October 23.

2005

Allen suffered a season-ending dislocated hip in the fifth game of the season in 2005 while tackling University of Georgia tight end Leonard Pope. Prior to the injury, he recorded 35 tackles (28 solo) with a 10-yard sack, 3 stops for losses, a forced fumble, and deflected 2 passes.

Professional career

Miami Dolphins

Allen was drafted by the Miami Dolphins in the first round with the 16th overall pick in the

. In Week 9 of the 2006 season, he recorded his first NFL interception in the victory over the Chicago Bears. As a rookie, he finished with 20 tackles, one interception, and two passes defended. Jason Allen was released by the Dolphins on November 10, 2010.

Houston Texans

Allen was claimed off waivers by the

on November 11, 2010. He finished tied for fifth in interceptions in the 2010 season with six.

Cincinnati Bengals

Allen signed with the

on March 17, 2012. He was released by the

on April 10, 2013.

NFL career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

References

External links

Tennessee Volunteers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Allen, Jason 1983 births Living people People from Muscle Shoals, Alabama Players of American football from Alabama American football cornerbacks American football safeties Tennessee Volunteers football players Miami Dolphins players Houston Texans players 21st-century American sportsmen Cincinnati Bengals players