Brandon Allen is Fighting for a Seat at the NFL’s Table
By Cory Thone
As the NFL combine starts to get underway this week, former Arkansas Razorback quarterback Brandon Allen has generated some buzz around his abilities and mental toughness. Despite solid career numbers, there are a lot of doubters of Allen’s NFL prospects. Can the Arkansas native prove his doubters wrong?
I’m going to try and be as objective as I can going into this article, but it’s going to be tough. I have a strong opinion of Brandon Allen. In that, I think the guy can do just about anything. Am I saying he’s the next superstar QB in the NFL? Probably not. But do I think he’s a better prospect than what people have given him credit for? Heck yes I do.
No quarterback has overcome more than Brandon Allen did on his way to becoming the University of Arkansas’ leading touchdown passer. Allen played under 3 different head coaches and 4 different offensive coordinators. He was booed and ridiculed by fans, and has had his truck vandalized. Twice.
Brandon Allen is as resilient as a QB can get, both mentally and physically. Do you need him to stay in the pocket or roll out? Do you want to incorporate a wide receiver sweep into the mix? He’s got it down. How about a fake sweep with a QB keeper in pressure situations? He nails it. What about if we ran a fake and threw Brandon Allen the ball on a two point conversion?
Spoiler Alert: He’s got that, too.
Yes, Allen is smaller than the average NFL QB. And apparently his hands are small. Which seems like something that would have impacted his game in both high school and college as well, but didn’t seem to be an issue. While I didn’t expect Allen to be a top 5 QB in the draft, I am a little surprised that he is hovering just outside of the top 10, and as a potential 7th round pick in the draft.
First of all, I need someone to look me in the eye and explain to me how Christian Hackenburg is the #5 QB in this class without smiling. No one has been able to do it. Watch on ESPN and CBS, when they talk about Hackenberg, they don’t look at the screen. They show game footage or look down. They can’t do it with a straight face! Christian “Blaine Gabbert” Hackenberg…*sigh*
It’s not just the Hack attack that has me scratching my head. Allen may be smaller, but he’s played in a pro-style offense for several years. He’s shown the mental ability to learn a new playbook multiple times. He had the 5th highest QBR in the nation, throwing for 31 touchdowns and only 8 interceptions in the SEC. In a conference full of the best defenses, Brandon Allen thrived as an offensive weapon.
But…tiny hands.
I’m not the only one who feels that Brandon Allen has been somewhat overlooked going into the draft. Daniel Jeremiah was on Bo Mattingly’s show earlier this week, and he said that the buzz around Allen has been building in certain circles. “Brandon Allen has a live arm. Those games against the Mississippi schools really got me excited about what he can do.”
Mel Kiper has said that he see’s the potential in Brandon Allen for a team like the Los Angeles Rams. Why draft a so-so QB in the first round? If you can’t get one of the top 2 or 3 QB’s in the draft, then go after a playmaker in another position. Kiper says that Brandon Allen would be a “nice get” in a middle round, somewhere in the 4th or 5th round.
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If I know one thing about Brandon Allen, it’s that he’s not going to let some naysayers slow him down. If anything, they’re going to motivate him to get better on the field. I fully expect Allen to turn even more heads when his chance comes to impress the scouts. And I expect his name to be called on draft day.
And God have mercy on whatever team gets duped into drafting Hackenberg with their first or second pick.