The Denver Broncos made a significant investment in defensive lineman Zach Allen by signing him to a 3-year, $47.75 million contract in March 2023. Since then, Allen has quietly emerged as one of the top players in the NFL at his position.
As the Broncos kick off the 2024 season, their defense has been crucial to their success, positioning them among the league’s best defensive units. Allen is currently leading the NFL in an important yet often overlooked statistic.
“No interior defender has recorded more pressures this season than Allen’s 11,” noted PFF’s Khaled Elsayed ahead of Denver’s Week 4 matchup against the New York Jets on September 29.
According to PFF, Allen ranks third in the NFL with 3.0 sacks and is on pace to earn his first Pro Bowl selection in his sixth season.
After earning All-ACC honors at Boston College in 2018, Zach Allen was selected by the Arizona Cardinals in the third round (No. 65 overall) of the 2019 NFL Draft.
NFL draft analyst Lance Zierlein described Allen as a “hard-charging defensive end” who relies on his quickness, strength, and instincts to compensate for his lack of length and athleticism. He noted that Allen’s toughness and quick diagnosis skills could make him effective as a run defender, though his rushing limitations might lead him to play inside on passing downs.
As a rookie, Allen quickly became a starter for the Cardinals but suffered a neck injury in Week 4 that sidelined him for the remainder of the season. He transitioned from defensive end to defensive tackle, missing four games in 2020, before returning to a full-time defensive end role in 2021. In 2022, the final year of his four-year, $4.75 million rookie contract, he had the best season of his career, recording 47 tackles, 5.5 sacks, 10 tackles for loss (TFL), and 20 quarterback hits in just 13 games.
After signing a lucrative contract with the Broncos, Allen played every regular-season game for the first time in his five NFL seasons, finishing with 60 tackles, 5.0 sacks, 8 TFL, and an impressive 24 QB hits.
During his last two seasons in Arizona, he played alongside three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year J.J. Watt, who served as a mentor.
“I can only speak highly of (Watt),” Allen said after joining the Broncos in 2023. “I learned a lot from him, and I’m grateful for that. Last year was a great opportunity, and we had excellent chemistry both on and off the field. I’m still picking his brain for ideas—he’s even helping me choose furniture for my new house.”
The Broncos will be relying on Zach Allen even more in 2024 following the loss of linebacker and leading tackler Alex Singleton for the remainder of the season. The team announced on September 25 that Singleton suffered a torn ACL during the Week 3 victory against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Singleton, who served as the defensive team captain, led the Broncos with 31 tackles. Remarkably, he played all 57 defensive snaps in the 26-7 win over Tampa Bay, despite the fact that he tore his ACL on just the eighth snap of the game.
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