Taje Allen

Last updated

Taje Allen
No. 20, 26
Position: Cornerback
Personal information
Born: (1973-11-06) November 6, 1973 (age 51)
Lubbock, Texas, U.S.
Height:5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Weight:185 lb (84 kg)
Career information
High school: Lubbock (TX) Estacado
College: Texas
NFL draft: 1997  / round: 5 / pick: 158
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Tackles:83
Interceptions:2
Sacks:0.5
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Taje LaQayne Allen (born November 6, 1973) is an American former professional football player who played cornerback for six seasons for the St. Louis Rams, with whom he won Super Bowl XXXIV, and the Kansas City Chiefs in the National Football League (NFL). [1]

Contents

College career

Allen played college football at the University of Texas where he helped the Longhorns with the last two Southwest Conference Championships and the first Big 12 Championship. During that time he played in the Sun Bowl (which the Longhorns won), Sugar Bowl and Fiesta Bowl. He first gained notoriety during his sophomore year when he came off the bench and knocked down a potential game-tying two-point conversion pass to help Texas beat Pittsburgh.

During his junior year, he was the Sugar Bowl roommate of Rob Weaver, a 30 year old who, right before the Sugar Bowl, was discovered to have committed fraud - playing under the name Ron McKelvey - to extend his college playing days.

During his senior year he received a Big 12 Honorable Mention.

Professional career

He was drafted by the Rams in the fifth round of the 1997 NFL Draft. [2] He played four seasons with the Rams during which time he started four games. His best season was 1999 when he started 2 games in place of an injured Dexter McCleon, recorded 2 interceptions (the only two of his NFL career) and had 36 combined tackles. [3] He won a Super Bowl ring that season with the Rams. Though he did not play in Super Bowl XXXIV he knocked down a potentially game-winning 4th down pass into the end zone at the end of the NFC Championship Game. [4]

Following the 2000 season he became an unrestricted free agent and was signed a two-year contract with the Chiefs. The Chiefs made him available for the expansion Texans after the 2001 but he was not selected in the expansion draft. He was released by the Chiefs a few months later, but signed with them again the next day. [5] The 2002 season was his last in which he saw limited playing time, being inactive for all but 6 games.

After retiring from football, he moved to Cedar Park, Texas, where he got into sports management first working as an Event Operations Assistant at the University of Texas at Austin and then for the Austin Convention Center. [6] He has three sons and a daughter. His son Eamon became a defensive back and kick returner for Sam Houston State. [7]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jeff Zgonina</span> American football player and coach (born 1970)

Jeffrey Marc Zgonina is an American football coach and former player who currently serves as the defensive line coach for the Dallas Cowboys. He played as a defensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL) for 17 seasons. He played college football for the Purdue Boilermakers and was selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the seventh round of the 1993 NFL draft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jerry Gray</span> American football player and coach (born 1962)

Jerry Don Gray is an American football coach and former player who is the assistant head coach/defense for the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL). Gray played college football at the University of Texas at Austin, where he garnered All-American honors. Thereafter, he played professionally for the Los Angeles Rams, Houston Oilers, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the NFL.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bobby Layne</span> American football player (1926–1986)

Robert Lawrence Layne was an American professional football player who was a quarterback for 15 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Texas Longhorns before being selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers with the third overall pick of the 1948 NFL draft and traded to the Chicago Bears. Layne played one season with the Bears, and then with the New York Bulldogs in 1949, the Detroit Lions from 1950 to 1958, and the Steelers from 1958 to 1962.

Richard Scott Proehl is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL). Proehl played 17 seasons with the Phoenix/Arizona Cardinals, Seattle Seahawks, Chicago Bears, St. Louis Rams, Carolina Panthers, and Indianapolis Colts. He played in four Super Bowls and won two: Super Bowl XXXIV with the Rams and Super Bowl XLI with the Colts. He is remembered as a member of "The Greatest Show on Turf".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mack Brown</span> American football coach (born 1951)

William Mack Brown is an American former college football coach. Brown most recently coached at the University of North Carolina, where he had two stints, first from 1988 until 1997, and again from 2019 until his firing at the end of the 2024 season. During his second stint in Chapel Hill, Brown became the North Carolina Tar Heels football program's all-time winningest coach, passing Dick Crum for most wins in program history.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vince Young</span> American gridiron football player (born 1983)

Vincent Paul Young Jr. is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback for six seasons in the National Football League (NFL). Young was selected by the Tennessee Titans as the third overall pick in the 2006 NFL draft, and he was also selected to be the Madden NFL 08 cover athlete.

"The Greatest Show on Turf" was a nickname for the high-flying offense of the St. Louis Rams during the 1999, 2000, and 2001 National Football League (NFL) seasons. The offense was designed by attack-oriented offensive coordinator and head coach Mike Martz who mixed an aerial attack and a run offense in an Air Coryell-style offense. The Rams' offense during these three seasons produced record scoring and yardage, three NFL MVP honors, and two Super Bowl appearances and one championship. In 2000, the team set an NFL record with 7,335 total offensive yards. Of those, 5,492 were passing yards, also an NFL team record.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bill Bradley (American football)</span> American gridiron football player and coach (born 1947)

William Calvin Bradley is an American former football player and coach. He played as a safety, punter and return specialist in the National Football League (NFL), earning All-Pro honors twice. He played with the Philadelphia Eagles for most of his career. As an assistant coach he won two Grey Cups in the Canadian Football League (CFL). He was also the defensive backs coach of the San Antonio Commanders of the Alliance of American Football.

Dexter Keith McCleon is an American former professional football safety who played in the National Football League (NFL). He played for the St. Louis Rams, Kansas City Chiefs, and Houston Texans in his ten-year career that started in 1997. In addition to his career in the NFL, McCleon was a volunteer assistant football coach at Meridian High School in his hometown of Meridian, Mississippi.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Diron Talbert</span> American football player (born 1944)

Diron Vester Talbert is an American former professional football player who played defensive end in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons, making the pro-bowl in 1975. He played four season with the Los Angeles Rams and 10 with the Washington Redskins, with whom we went to Super Bowl VII. He was later named one of the 70 greatest Redskin players of all time. As a freshman at the University of Texas he was part of the team that won the 1963 National Championship and he later made all-conference and pre-season All-American teams.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tarell Brown</span> American football player (born 1985)

Tarell Lameek Brown is a former American football cornerback. He was selected by the San Francisco 49ers in the fifth round of the 2007 NFL draft. He played college football for the University of Texas.

Alan D. Lowry is a former National Football League (NFL) and college football coach, best known as the architect of the Music City Miracle. He coached for several teams over more than 25 years, winning one Super Bowl and going to another. Prior to coaching he played football at the University of Texas, where he won a national championship and three conference championships, was named to the All-Conference team twice at two different positions and was named the 1973 Cotton Bowl Offensive MVP.

Don Larry Talbert is an American former professional football player who was a offensive tackle for eight years, interrupted by two years in Vietnam, in the National Football League (NFL) for the Atlanta Falcons, New Orleans Saints and Dallas Cowboys including the Super Bowl VI champion Cowboys. Prior to that he was an All-American playing college football for the Texas Longhorns.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kansas City Chiefs</span> National Football League franchise in Kansas City, Missouri

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roy Miller (American football)</span> American football player (born 1987)

Roy Miller is an American former professional football player who was a defensive tackle for nine seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Texas Longhorns, and was selected by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the third round of the 2009 NFL draft. He also played for the Jacksonville Jaguars and Kansas City Chiefs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Akeem Ayers</span> American football player (born 1989)

Akeem Christopher Ayers is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the UCLA Bruins, earning second-team All-American honors in 2010. Ayers was selected by the Tennessee Titans in the second round of the 2011 NFL draft. He has also played for the New England Patriots, St. Louis Rams, Indianapolis Colts, New York Giants. He won Super Bowl XLIX with the Patriots.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alex Okafor</span> American football player (born 1991)

Alex Okafor is an American former professional football player who was a defensive end in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Texas Longhorns, earning All-American honors. Okafor was selected by the Arizona Cardinals in the fourth round of the 2013 NFL draft, and has also played for the New Orleans Saints and Kansas City Chiefs. He won Super Bowl LIV with the Chiefs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Malcom Brown</span> American football player (born 1994)

Malcom D'Shawn Brown is an American former professional football player who was a defensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Texas Longhorns and was selected by the New England Patriots in the first round of the 2015 NFL draft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Samson Ebukam</span> Nigerian American football player (born 1995)

Nnamka Samson Ebukam is a Nigerian–American professional football defensive end for the Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Eastern Washington Eagles and was selected by the Los Angeles Rams in the fourth round of the 2017 NFL draft.

Keaontay Ingram is an American professional football running back for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Texas Longhorns and USC Trojans.

References

  1. ↑ "Taje Allen". NFL.com.
  2. ↑ "1997 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved March 30, 2023.
  3. ↑ "Taje Allen Stats". Pro-Football-Reference.com . Retrieved May 8, 2023.
  4. ↑ "Titans, Rams Pack for Atlanta". The Washington Post. January 24, 2000.
  5. ↑ "Taje Allen Transactions" . Retrieved May 8, 2023.
  6. ↑ "Taje Allen,17-Year Department Veteran, Former Longhorn, NFL Player Promoted to Assistant Director at Austin Convention Center Department" . Retrieved July 10, 2023.
  7. ↑ "2023 Sam Houston State roster" . Retrieved July 10, 2023.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.