Remembering Larry Allen: Cowboys players, coaches lament death of Hall of Fame offensive lineman

FRISCO, Texas – Tuesday presented current Dallas Cowboys coaches and players with their first opportunity to express their emotions and thoughts about the “sudden death of Pro Football Hall of Fame offensive lineman Larry Allen, who died during a family vacation in Mexico on Sunday.

Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy made a point of starting the team’s mandatory minicamp with a video of Allen during a team morning huddle.

“Obviously, a huge loss for the Cowboys and everyone,” McCarthy said. “Not knowing Larry, I just remember him as a great player, a Hall of Fame player. Just hearing the stories told about him over the last day and a half has been really cool. Today at our staff meeting, I just wanted to make sure I had the opportunity to talk about Larry Allen’s passing.”

New defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer was on the Dallas coaching staff from the beginning to the end of Allen’s Cowboys career, from 1994 to 2005, in various roles as assistant coach (1994), defensive backs coach (1995-1999) and defensive coordinator (1994-1999). 2000-2006). ).

“I talked to the team today. Larry and I came into the league together. As kids, we sat in the back row with the special teams group, so I got a chance to get to know him over the years with that,” Zimmer said. “Larry was obviously a great player, bench press 700 pounds, 11 Pro Bowls. He was a guy who didn’t really talk much, but he had a very infectious laugh.

Zimmer remembers seeing injury reports from opposing teams full of surprises with inactive defensive players, which the Cowboys coaching staff would attribute to players across the league not wanting to face Allen.

“The night before the game, we arrived and so-and-so wasn’t playing. They said he had the ‘Larry Allen flu’. There weren’t many people who wanted to play against him. It was a sad day that we lost him. We actually showed a video of it today and I got a little emotional about it.

Allen, an 11-time Pro Bowler and six-time First Team All-Pro, and current Cowboys right guard Zack Martin, a nine-time Pro Bowler and seven-time First Team All-Pro, have built a relationship with each other over Martin’s career as two of the best attackers in Dallas.

“When you say offensive line and the NFL together, Larry Allen is, if not the guy, one of the best guys you think of in the history of our league,” Martin said. “He meant a lot to this organization and to offensive linemen everywhere. … I was fortunate enough to have some interaction with him in training camp my rookie year. He would send me some messages before the games. Obviously, thoughts are with his family. I got to play with his son for a year at training camp (Larry III), so I think about them.”

The highlight McCarthy played against Allen in front of the team on Tuesday morning left Martin and the current players in awe.

“We played a roll this morning in the team meeting with just him pulling and taking guys out,” Martin said. “He’s done that for a long time too. Unbelievable player and our thoughts are with his family.”

Cowboys COO and EVP Stephen Jones compared current Dallas Pro Bowl left guard Tyler Smith for Allen in February, a comparison Smith discussed just days before Allen’s passing.

“My thoughts and prayers go out to the family,” left guard Tyler Smith said. “No one expected this… He was still young. Life is short. Last week you guys were asking me a question about him, and I was talking a little about him. I’ve actually never met him in real life yet. I was thinking about it earlier and talking to my mom… Life is short. It’s definitely a big loss for the football world and its people, for sure.

“It’s huge, for sure,” Smith said on May 30 when asked about Jones comparing him to Allen. “Just knowing Larry, everything he did and how great he was. … Just a guy. I saw the tape. Just extremely athletic. … One of the best guard pullers to probably ever play in the NFL. Few people are doing things like this anymore. … It’s my mission to be the best I can be. Be the best Tyler Smith I can be every day. Get better, stay hungry, never lose that passion. Just keep improving.”

Smith is also very proud to wear Allen’s number 73, continuing the Cowboys’ tradition of awarding current players with legendary numbers, such as wide receiver CeeDee Lamb wearing number 88.

“I’ve always been proud of it,” Smith said. “It all really started the day my name was called (in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft). Just coming here, contributing to the room. Taking care of culture the right way. Being the best I can be. Honoring those who sacrificed for me and honoring those who sacrificed before me. It’s always huge for me. I’ll continue to use it well, for sure.”

Current Cowboys assistant defensive line coach Greg Ellis, eighth overall pick by Dallas in 1998 NFL Draft who played 11 of his 12 seasons with the Cowboys from 1998 to 2008, credited Allen with welcoming the NFL moment in training camp in 1998, where he knocked Ellis off the football immediately at the line of scrimmage. Ellis said he had never been tackled like Allen did to him when he was in high school or college.

“A huge, huge loss,” Ellis said of Allen. … “It’s a deep pain. As a rookie, I didn’t know much about Larry because he was still a young player, but I quickly learned a lot about him. You talk about someone who made his mark in the NFL, he obviously did that.”