During his first time as a free agent, center Brian Allen decided to turn down other opportunities to play elsewhere and continue his career as a member of the Los Angeles Rams by signing a three-year, $24 million deal last week. He is excited to return to a “unique culture” and work with great teammates, including Aaron Donald and Joseph Noteboom. Allen stated he is happy to keep growing with Matthew Stafford and adding new weapons like Allen Robinson in order to be the best possible version of the 2022 Rams.
Continuing to work with Stafford and mature in Sean McVay’s offense was too appealing to turn down
“Being around Matt for the one year that I had wasn’t really something I wanted to leave...I really feel like I’m still a young football player and I’m still maturing in our offense and I’m growing with our schemes and things of that nature. I really didn’t want to leave kind of not knowing how much better I could be in our offense. That was definitely something that was in the back of my mind. I didn’t want to go somewhere and be in a situation where I didn’t have someone like Matt to work with... He’d be a hard person to let know your leaving.”
Stafford was an advocate for Allen during the season, stating they see the game in a similar fashion. The two will have at least another three years to continue that all important center-quarterback relationship.
Rams QB Matthew Stafford on the rapport between him and C Brian Allen:
— Stu Jackson (@StuJRams) September 29, 2021
"He's been great. He thinks like me, which is great. Thinks like the quarterback and he sees things the way I see them. He's making protection calls as I'm thinking them and saying them."
Allen expects Robinson to step in and ball out
“I think the environment we have is going to be a great place for Allen to come in and kind of just step right in and do what he’s expecting of himself. I’m sure he’ll fit right in. He’s obviously a great talent.”
The newest Ram certainly has a fan in Allen. The former Michigan State Spartan and his college teammates often raved about Robinson’s playmaking ability, as Robinson was a local high school football star about an hour away from MSU in Bloomfield Township, MI.
Be careful what you say and type because Allen remembers
“There were a lot of times where there weren’t a lot of people in my corner. I’m thankful for the people I had there. This has always been my plan. I can tell from a lot of your guy’s articles that hasn’t always been the plan. I just started working hard and this has always been my goal and just really happy the way that this has worked out...This has made it all worth it.”
Allen has certainly had his fair share of skeptics, myself included. Questionable performances earlier in his career led to plenty of criticism to start the 2021 campaign. That can all be put to rest after solidifying his role as LA’s starting center and earning a lucrative, yet team friendly deal.
Another “always wait for the real contract details” moment; looks like C Brian Allen’s hit is $1.8M ($5M cash) for 2022 and his contract essentially averages $6M/yr for 3 years or $5.5 for 2, relatively small dead $ incurred if released after 2023. Over the Cap has more on this.
— Jourdan Rodrigue (@JourdanRodrigue) March 18, 2022
Winning the Super Bowl doesn’t feel real yet, despite the extended celebrations
“It still hasn’t really set in that we won that game. I’m just kind of in, I don’t know if it’s denial or just kind of going with the motions...I definitely celebrated a little bit longer than most seasons, kind of carried a week or two longer than it should have, but you don’t win the Super Bowl too often...Now it’s time to get back to work and focus on the task at hand. We obviously won the Super Bowl last year, but the new league year and new goals. The 22-23 season is here and time to close the yearbook and keep working.”
I can’t blame him or anyone else for an extended celebration after winning the game’s biggest prize, but the season will be here before you know it! Sundays will continue to be pointless until then.
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