Jared Allen became the 27th member of the Vikings' Ring of Honor on Friday when the team played host to him at U.S. Bank Stadium for a training camp practice. He will be honored at halftime of the Vikings' Oct. 30 home game against the Cardinals.
Jared Allen to be inducted into Vikings Ring of Honor
He will be honored at halftime of the Vikings' Oct. 30 home game against the Cardinals.
July 30, 2022 at 12:14AM
Allen, whose 22 sacks in 2011 remain the franchise's single-season record, spoke with the team before a highlight reel played on the video boards to recognize the former defensive end.
"He talked about, 'What's your purpose? Is it family? Is it money? What is it, really?" outside linebacker Za'Darius Smith said. "I was a guy that came in, played one year of high school football, got a little taste of the money, but I'm still here today wanting to play football because I love the game and it's in my heart, man. That message that he just said meant so much to me."
Allen was a three-time All-Pro selection during his six Vikings seasons, during each of which he led the team in sacks. He had 85½ sacks in 96 games after he was acquired from Kansas City in 2008 for a first-round pick, two third-round picks and a late-round pick swap.
"We gave up some picks for him and it was a lot of discussion about it," Mark Wilf said. "But it turned out to be one of the best things we did as ownership and in this franchise history, [which] is to get a player of his level here. Our first two seasons out of the block, we won the division. So, he made a big impact right away and we're fortunate it worked out."
Mike Conley was in Minneapolis, where he sounded the Gjallarhorn at the Vikings game, on Sunday during the robbery.
