Terry Thomas Allen Jr. (born February 21, 1968) 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

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 ...

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) for 11 seasons. Allen played

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for the

Clemson Tigers The Clemson Tigers are the sport, athletic teams that represent Clemson University, located in Clemson, South Carolina. They compete as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I level (NCAA Divis ...

. He was selected by the

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. The Vikings compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. Founded in 1960 as ...

in the ninth round of the 1990 NFL draft. Between 1992 and 1996, Allen had four consecutive seasons of rushing for 1,000 or more yards, minus the 1993 season which he missed completely due to an injury. Terry is married to Annette Allen and they have two daughters, Shayna and Haley Allen.

Professional career

Minnesota Vikings

During Allen's rookie season, he was the second string running back behind

Herschel Walker Herschel Junior Walker (born March 3, 1962) is an American former professional football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 12 seasons. He was also the Republican nominee in the 2022 United States Senate election ...

. The next season, the Vikings named Allen as the starter, and he rushed for 1,201 yards and 13 touchdowns. He also caught 49 passes for 478 yards and 2 touchdowns. In the summer of 1993, Allen tore his ACL in practice and missed the entire 1993 season. In 1994, Allen returned. Despite dealing with two bad ACL's, he was able to amass 1,031 rushing yards and 8 touchdowns.

Washington Redskins

Allen joined the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East ...

for the 1995 season and rushed for 1,309 yards and 10 touchdowns. During the 1996 season, his second with the Redskins, he gathered 21 rushing touchdowns; only 9 other running backs ever rushed for over 20 touchdowns in a single season. He also had another career best in the 1996 season; besides 21 rushing touchdowns, he ran for 1,353 yards, which earned him a spot in the

Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (since 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's All-star, star players. The format has changed ...

. After the 1996 season, he played with Washington for only two more seasons and ran for 700 or more yards in each season.

New England Patriots

1999 1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons. Events January * January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers. * January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...

, Allen played for the

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. The Patriots compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The Pa ...

, where he ran for nearly 900 yards with 8 rushing touchdowns.

New Orleans Saints

Allen had the worst season of his career with the

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. Since 1975, the team ...

2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...

, when he was forced into action after starting running back

Ricky Williams Errick Miron (born Errick Lynne Williams Jr.; May 21, 1977), known professionally as Ricky Williams, is an American former professional football running back who played for 11 seasons in the National Football League (NFL) and one season in the ...

broke his ankle.

Baltimore Ravens

On August 12, 2001, Allen signed with the Ravens following a season ending injury to Jamal Lewis, reuniting with Brian Billick, who was his offensive coordinator with the Vikings. He led the Ravens in rushing yards in his one season with the team, rushing for 658 yards.

NFL career statistics

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Allen, Terry 1968 births Living people People from Commerce, Georgia American football running backs Clemson Tigers football players Minnesota Vikings players Washington Redskins players New England Patriots players New Orleans Saints players Baltimore Ravens players National Conference Pro Bowl players Players of American football from Georgia (U.S. state)