Branden Albert's Huge Balls
09-19-2007, 11:38 PM
http://www.kansascity.com/sports/chiefs/story/282628.html
By ADAM TEICHER
The Kansas City Star
His two-game suspension over, Chiefs defensive end Jared Allen returned to practice Wednesday with his game face on. Allen is expected to play in Sunday’s home opener against the Minnesota Vikings.
Jared Allen was so pained by his forced absence from the Chiefs that he initially planned to fly to Chicago on his own so he could watch last week’s game from the stands like any other fan.
He had a change of heart on his way to the airport to catch his flight. What he saw as he watched from his couch didn’t make things easier for him.
The Chiefs played well enough defensively to win. They forced two second-half turnovers, each giving the Chiefs the ball in Chicago’s end.
Allen was tortured by the thought that had he played, the Chiefs might have done enough to escape with a victory rather than be stuck with their 20-10 loss.
“We’re on the verge of being really good,” Allen said. “I’m hoping to come back and provide that little bit extra to help us win.”
His two-game NFL suspension is now finished, so Allen returned to practice Wednesday for the first time since the preseason. He assumed his normal spot as the starting right defensive end and will play in Sunday’s game against Minnesota at Arrowhead Stadium.
Though the Chiefs were encouraged by the play of their defense against the Bears, all three of their sacks came from linebackers. Tackle Alfonso Boone is the only Chiefs lineman with a sack this season, so the Chiefs could use the pass-rush boost Allen figures to provide.
“It’s always good to have him back because he’s our premier pass rusher,” defensive end Tamba Hali said. “We were missing him. He’s going to get to the quarterback. You know that. It takes pressure off everybody.”
Allen wasn’t exactly a stranger during his suspension. He couldn’t practice or play, but he did attend team meetings and provided his own particular brand of moral support.
“I’m not going to lie,” he said. “The rest was nice. I played a lot of golf. My golf game is on point right now.”
At practice, he looked like someone who had played a lot of golf in the past couple of weeks.
“He was pretty fresh today,” coach Herm Edwards said. “He hasn’t practiced in two weeks, so he has fresh legs. The key is how he feels tomorrow. He’ll be a little sore.
“He’s excited about playing. He practiced hard.”
Allen had a typically strong training camp and preseason. Judging from Wednesday’s developments, he doesn’t appear to have lost that edge.
“I think mentally and physically I’m ready, and I think that’s the most important thing right now,” Allen said. “My whole goal was to keep a routine so I don’t get out of sync. If I had gone on vacation for two weeks, then you come back and you haven’t done anything for two weeks. But I was up every morning in the gym, running and going through what I know we do for individual drills. I went in and did those on my own and kept with football movements.
“I was able to come to meetings, which was a good thing because mentally, I kept in a football mindset and a football mode.”
But there’s nothing like playing. Allen was so wound up during the two games he missed that he found himself screaming at what he found to be objectionable analysis on TV.
Allen was suspended for two games for violating the NFL’s substance-abuse policy. He was arrested twice recently in Johnson County and charged with DUI.
“It was frustrating and tough, especially because it was self-inflicted,” Allen said. “I’m the cause for why I wasn’t out there with my teammates. It’s all over with now. That’s the best part about it. Everything that happened a year ago is completely done. It’s behind me. We can move on and we can have a great season still.
“It starts Sunday.”
By ADAM TEICHER
The Kansas City Star
His two-game suspension over, Chiefs defensive end Jared Allen returned to practice Wednesday with his game face on. Allen is expected to play in Sunday’s home opener against the Minnesota Vikings.
Jared Allen was so pained by his forced absence from the Chiefs that he initially planned to fly to Chicago on his own so he could watch last week’s game from the stands like any other fan.
He had a change of heart on his way to the airport to catch his flight. What he saw as he watched from his couch didn’t make things easier for him.
The Chiefs played well enough defensively to win. They forced two second-half turnovers, each giving the Chiefs the ball in Chicago’s end.
Allen was tortured by the thought that had he played, the Chiefs might have done enough to escape with a victory rather than be stuck with their 20-10 loss.
“We’re on the verge of being really good,” Allen said. “I’m hoping to come back and provide that little bit extra to help us win.”
His two-game NFL suspension is now finished, so Allen returned to practice Wednesday for the first time since the preseason. He assumed his normal spot as the starting right defensive end and will play in Sunday’s game against Minnesota at Arrowhead Stadium.
Though the Chiefs were encouraged by the play of their defense against the Bears, all three of their sacks came from linebackers. Tackle Alfonso Boone is the only Chiefs lineman with a sack this season, so the Chiefs could use the pass-rush boost Allen figures to provide.
“It’s always good to have him back because he’s our premier pass rusher,” defensive end Tamba Hali said. “We were missing him. He’s going to get to the quarterback. You know that. It takes pressure off everybody.”
Allen wasn’t exactly a stranger during his suspension. He couldn’t practice or play, but he did attend team meetings and provided his own particular brand of moral support.
“I’m not going to lie,” he said. “The rest was nice. I played a lot of golf. My golf game is on point right now.”
At practice, he looked like someone who had played a lot of golf in the past couple of weeks.
“He was pretty fresh today,” coach Herm Edwards said. “He hasn’t practiced in two weeks, so he has fresh legs. The key is how he feels tomorrow. He’ll be a little sore.
“He’s excited about playing. He practiced hard.”
Allen had a typically strong training camp and preseason. Judging from Wednesday’s developments, he doesn’t appear to have lost that edge.
“I think mentally and physically I’m ready, and I think that’s the most important thing right now,” Allen said. “My whole goal was to keep a routine so I don’t get out of sync. If I had gone on vacation for two weeks, then you come back and you haven’t done anything for two weeks. But I was up every morning in the gym, running and going through what I know we do for individual drills. I went in and did those on my own and kept with football movements.
“I was able to come to meetings, which was a good thing because mentally, I kept in a football mindset and a football mode.”
But there’s nothing like playing. Allen was so wound up during the two games he missed that he found himself screaming at what he found to be objectionable analysis on TV.
Allen was suspended for two games for violating the NFL’s substance-abuse policy. He was arrested twice recently in Johnson County and charged with DUI.
“It was frustrating and tough, especially because it was self-inflicted,” Allen said. “I’m the cause for why I wasn’t out there with my teammates. It’s all over with now. That’s the best part about it. Everything that happened a year ago is completely done. It’s behind me. We can move on and we can have a great season still.
“It starts Sunday.”