‘He was that good' — Former teammates reflect on what made Eric Allen a Hall of Famer

‘He was that good' — Former teammates reflect on what made Eric Allen a Hall of Famer originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

It didn’t take young William Thomas long to realize who he needed to follow around.

Eric Allen.

“When I first came in, I saw how Eric studied, how he was always watching film,” Willie T. said. “He had tremendous ability, but he didn’t just rely on that. His preparation was unbelievable. All those guys knew how to prepare — Seth (Joyner), Byron (Evans) — all those guys. But Eric was unreal. 

“When you have that kind of ability and that kind of preparation, you’re going to make a lot of plays, and Eric did. He was always making plays.”

Allen and Thomas were teammates with the Eagles from 1991 through 1994, when Allen left for the Saints. They reunited in Oakland in 2000 and 2001 and both retired after the Tuck Rule game, the Raiders’ playoff loss to the Patriots in 2001.

On Saturday, Allen will be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio.

All those hours Willie T. spent watching Allen paid off. He had 27 interceptions of his own, 11th-most in NFL history by a linebacker. He and Ray Lewis are the only players in NFL history with 35 sacks and 25 interceptions. 

“Being around Eric made it easy for me to sit there and watch film,” said Thomas, a Pro Bowler after the 1995 and 1996 seasons. “I just watched him and did what he did. When you get out there on the field, it’s just like second nature. You’re going to go make a play.”

Allen had 54 regular-season interceptions and four more in the postseason. He’s the only cornerback in history with 58 total interceptions and nine pick-6’s.

“You know how most DBs are really receivers who can’t catch? Well, that’s not always true, because Eric can catch,” Thomas said during a visit to Eagles training camp last week. “He did some special things. Plays like in the Jet game (in 1993), where he went, what, 90-something yards (94 yards) for a touchdown? He returned it like he was a punt returner. Those are the kinds of things that made him special.”

Five-time Pro Bowl wide receiver Mike Quick was only with Allen for three years at the end of his brilliant career, but that was long enough for him to truly appreciate what a unique talent Allen was.

“I think the thing that Eric had that was so special was his ability to change directions so quickly without losing speed,” Quick said at training camp this week. 

“And I thought he was a very skilled guy tracking the ball and separating receivers from the ball. I thought he was very skilled at that. To be honest, I don’t think, other than when we had (1981 Pro Bowler) Roynell Young, I don’t know if we had another corner who could line up man-to-man on me and give me trouble. He was that good.”

Allen had five interceptions in 1988, including one off Vinny Testaverde in Tampa in his first career game. He and Nate Allen are the only Eagles with INTs in their first NFL game in the last 50 years. Allen’s five INTs in 1988 are the most by any Eagles rookie since Herm Edwards had six in 1977.

“When he came into the league, I felt like he was a guy who was ready,” Quick said. “He didn’t really have to spend a whole lot of time like a lot of rookies learning how to play the position. 

“He knew how to play. He came into the league ready to play ball. I mean he needed to come in and learn the system that we were running at the time, whatever Buddy wanted him to do, but he’s a guy who came into the league ready to play mentally and physically.”

Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio missed Allen by a year in New Orleans — he coached under Jim Mora through 1994 and Allen signed with the Saints in 1995. But teams he was with faced Allen 12 times during his years with the Saints, Panthers and Colts. 

Fangio didn’t coach against Allen, but as a defensive coach he developed a keen appreciation for the Eagles’ 2nd-round pick out of Arizona State.

“Yeah, I think he was really sticky in coverage, had great instincts and good ball skills, which is a lot of the things you’re looking for in a corner,” he said. “And he excelled for a long time, too. I mean, how many years did he play? Fourteen? That’s a long time for a corner to play at a high level. 

“He was a really good player. He had all the skills, the measurables, but he had great instincts and ball skills, which made him who he was. He did it over a long time and did it at a high level for a long time.”

Allen was elected into the Hall of Fame in his 24th year of eligibility, the 4th-longest wait ever by a player voted in by the modern-era committee. 

There are a lot of theories why it took so long, but Quick believes the Eagles’ defensive line — led by Reggie White, Clyde Simmons and Jerome Brown — was so dominant that everybody else flew under the radar.

“I would say it’s actually similar to what we had last year on the defense,” he said. “There was all this talk about the defensive front, and they were really good, but not so much talk about the secondary — Slay’s not letting anybody catch the ball, Quinyon’s not giving up any plays on his side, those two safeties, how well they played. They don’t talk about that as much because the defensive front was so dominant. But on the back end they’re pretty dominant as well. 

“It was the same with us. Maybe the numbers don’t jump out at you the way the numbers on the pass rush did, but that defense was so good in every area. The linebackers were really good, the safeties were really good, and what E.A. could do on one side of the field, just locking down a guy, it just made it much easier for Buddy to take those guys up front and do some special things.”

It was Allen who was so dominant against Quick in practice that Quick realized his career was coming to an end.

“I took a lot of reps against him and it made me realize that, ‘OK, my career is coming to an end,’” he said. “When I came back from my (knee) injury (in 1990) and I’m trying to beat press coverage, it was Eric Allen who gave me issues and I had to start thinking about, you know, what’s my next move? Because I’m not used to guys getting their hands on me. I’m bigger, stronger than most guys that played the position, and I can get away from them. So then I had to start thinking, ‘OK, do I need to move to tight end?’”

Fangio has coached a number of Hall of Famers over the years, including Sam Mills, Rickey Jackson, Kevin Greene, Ed Reed, Ray Lewis, Patrick Willis and Jared Allen. It’s quite a list. He knows what a Hall of Famer looks like.

I asked Fangio before practice on Tuesday if he believes Allen should be a Hall of Famer.

“How many interceptions did he have?” Fangio asks.

Fifty-four in the regular season and 58 total.

“Fifty-eight interceptions?” he said with that Vic Fangio grin. “Yeah. Belongs in the Hall of Fame.”

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