Chicago Bears: Hometown free agents to consider
By Ryan Heckman
Guard/Tackle Jeff Allen
Birthplace: Chicago, IL
Coming from the Windy City itself, veteran offensive lineman Jeff Allen would bring a lot of good traits to the Bears. First off, just last year he played in an offense featuring a lot of speed and innovation. The Kansas City Chiefs were one of the top teams in all of football, offensively, and knowing how to play in an offense like that is key in today’s NFL.
Speaking of Kansas City, Allen actually got his start with the Chiefs back in 2012. Allen was a second-round pick in the 2012 NFL Draft out of Illinois, so he truly is a Chicagoan through and through.
Allen played for the Chiefs for three seasons while Matt Nagy was there, which gives him an interesting connection to the Bears. Already having a relationship with Nagy would certainly help his cause in coming to Chicago.
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Over his 7-year NFL career, Allen has played in 80 games, starting in 66 of them. He has invaluable experience in this league — a league where it is difficult to find well-groomed offensive linemen coming out of college.
Speaking of that, his leadership and experience would be big in helping along a young kid like James Daniels. Allen has played both guard and tackle, so his versatility is something he has in common with Daniels, who can also play multiple positions up front.