The Denver Broncos did a lot to solidify their pass rush, both interior and exterior, with the agreement to sign former Arizona Cardinals defensive lineman Zach Allen to a thee-year, $47.75 million deal with $32.5 million guaranteed. It’s a significant bet on an ascending player.
The Cardinals took Allen in the third round of the 2019 draft out of Boston College, and Allen was off to a relatively unremarkable start to his NFL career through his first two seasons. But then, J.J. Watt came to the Valley of the Sun in 2021 with a few ideas on how to be a multi-gap disruptor, and Allen was a willing disciple. The 6-foot-4, 281 Allen had his best season to date in 2022, with six sacks, 15 quarterback hits, and 14 quarterback hurries in 427 pass-rushing snaps. Allen’s sacks came everywhere from the edge to aligned over the guards to true nose-shade alignments — so, like his mentor, he’s developed into a guy who can harass quarterbacks from any place you’d like.
On this sack of New England’s Mac Jones in Week 14, Allen gave rookie left guard Cole Strange an evil inside/outside move, while Mr. Watt edged around the Patriots’ offensive line to get to Jones from the other side. They met at Jones, which was a nice touch.