During Jonathan Allen’s prior seven seasons with Washington, the NFL team did not have a winning record. But in 2024, the Commanders are 4-2 and lead the NFC East standings.
Washington will have to try to maintain that position without the defensive tackle. Commanders coach Dan Quinn said that the former Alabama All-American had suffered a torn pectoral muscle in the third quarter of Washington’s 30-23 loss to the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday.
“It’s a big blow for us,” Quinn remarked on Monday. “Jon Allen has obviously been a staple player here in terms of play style and mentality, so we’re really disappointed for him as a man and a ballplayer. We’ll definitely miss him this season. And he should likely have surgery in the coming days.”
Allen, the 17th pick in the 2017 NFL Draft, has spent his whole career with Washington. He was selected to the Pro Bowl in both 2021 and 2022.
“It’ll be a multitude of people in roles,” Quinn said of Allen’s replacement, “and how we can feature guys to do that because Jon is rare and has unique skills and talent, so it’s not just plug and play.” The good news is that we have a large, diverse workforce, and we’ll spotlight everyone of them in a unique way to discover how we can accomplish this.
“We’ll certainly miss Jon and the strength and the attitude that he brings inside.”
Daron Payne, another former Alabama standout and Shades Valley graduate, is the Commanders’ other starting defensive tackle.
Allen had completed 230 defensive snaps this season. Payne has played 242.
Phidarian Mathis, a former Crimson Tide defensive lineman, and Johnny Newton are the leading candidates to replace Allen. Mathis has 127 defensive snaps in 2024 following two injury-plagued seasons, while Newton has 117 defensive snaps as a second-round rookie.
The Commanders will meet the Carolina Panthers at Northwest Stadium in Landover, Maryland, at 3:05 p.m. CDT on Sunday.
Allen swept Alabama’s national Defensive Player of the Year accolades in 2016, collecting both the Bronko Nagurski Trophy and the Chuck Bednarik Award. He also received the SEC Defensive Player of the Year Award, the Rotary Lombardi Award for best lineman, and the Ted Hendricks Award for top defensive end. Allen was a unanimous All-American in 2016 and was named All-SEC for the third consecutive season.
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