Jeff Allen (born January 8, 1990) 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

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison gu ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He played

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for the

Illinois Fighting Illini The Illinois Fighting Illini () are the College athletics, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. The university offers 10 men's and 11 women's Varsity team, varsity sports. The university op ...

. Allen was selected by the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division. Established in 1959 ...

in the second round of the

2012 NFL draft The 2012 NFL draft was the 77th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible American football players for their rosters. The draft, which is officially called the "NFL Player Selection Meeting", was held ...

. He 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 ...

College career

After graduating from

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

's King High School, Allen attended the

University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC, U of I, Illinois, or University of Illinois) is a public land-grant research university in the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, Illinois, United States. Established in 1867, it is the f ...

from 2008 to 2011. He started 47 games at both left and right tackle during his career.

Professional career

Pre-draft

Projected as a second round selection by ''

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with a circulation of over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellen ...

'', Allen was ranked as the No. 6 offensive guard available in the

Kansas City Chiefs (first stint)

Allen was selected by the

in the second round, 44th overall. In his rookie season, he appeared in all 16 games, and became a starter at left guard by Week 4 against the

San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team in the National Football League (NFL). The Chargers played in San Diego, California from 1961 until 2016, before relocating back to the Greater Los Angeles area, where the franch ...

. For his first two seasons with the Chiefs, he played with

Jon Asamoah Jonathan Yao-Lante Asamoah (born July 21, 1988) is an American former professional football offensive guard who played in the National Football League (NFL). He was selected by the Kansas City Chiefs in the third round of the 2010 NFL draft. He ...

who was a teammate of Allen's at Illinois.

Houston Texans

On March 9, 2016, Allen signed a four-year contract with the

. On May 11, 2018, Allen was placed on the reserve/physically unable to perform list after dealing with concussions and ankle injuries. On July 13, 2018, Allen was released by the Texans after reaching an injury settlement.

Kansas City Chiefs (second stint)

On October 16, 2018, Allen signed with the Chiefs. Allen was re-signed on August 20, 2019. He was released on October 3, 2019. He announced his retirement after the Chiefs won

Super Bowl LIV Super Bowl LIV was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2019 NFL season, 2019 season. The American Football Conference (AFC) champion 2019 Kansas City Chiefs season, Kansas City ...

. Despite not being on the roster when the Chiefs won the Super Bowl, he received a Super Bowl ring from the Chiefs.

Personal life

Allen is married to Marrisa Holden, a former Illinois soccer player. They have one daughter and son together. In 2018, the couple founded The Cookie Society, a gourmet cookie shop based in Frisco, Texas.

References

External links

Kansas City Chiefs bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Allen, Jeff 1990 births Living people Players of American football from Chicago American football offensive guards American football offensive tackles Illinois Fighting Illini football players Kansas City Chiefs players Houston Texans players 21st-century American sportsmen