Since the NFL made sacks an official stat in 1982, 12 players have recorded 135 or more in their careers.
Ten of the 12 are Pro Football Hall of Famers, with Terrell Suggs (139) and Jared Allen (136) being the only two to not yet be enshrined in Canton.
Suggs retired after the 2019 season and will almost certainly be inducted as soon as next season when he’s on the ballot, leaving just Allen, the former Kansas City Chief, Minnesota Vikings, and Chicago Bear as the lone 135+ sack man out of the Hall.
Speaking to Kay Adams on Up and Adams Tuesday, the four-time All-Pro, who has also been a four-time Pro Football Hall of Fame finalist since first appearing on the ballot in 2021, said he doesn’t concern himself with a potential induction, but was disappointed to not get the call this year.
4x 1st team All-Pro DE Jared Allen was candid about his disappointment in not making the HOF for a FOURTH straight year…@vikings @heykayadams pic.twitter.com/ryK4IxPd0u
— Up & Adams (@UpAndAdamsShow) May 28, 2024
“I take things with a grain of salt. Was I upset when I didn’t get the call this year? Absolutely, it’s frustrating. It’s a bit of a kick to your ego and all the hard work you put in over the years. At the end of the day, though, I say it all the time. It’s not going to change my life. My family’s not going to love me any more or less, it’s not going to stop me from doing what I do on a day-to-day basis,” Allen said.
When posed with the hypothetical situation of having to cut his signature mullet and never grow it back in exchange for an induction, Allen made it clear that the hair stays.
BREAKING: 4x HOF Finalists Jared Allen WOULDN'T cut his mullet to get into Canton 🤯🔊@Vikings @ProFootballHOF @heykayadams pic.twitter.com/LfXt0aE9K5
— Up & Adams (@UpAndAdamsShow) May 28, 2024
“First of all, I’m not going to let someone tell me I have to cut my hair to get anything. That’s like telling me I have to put a jacket on to go eat at a restaurant. Sorry, not happening. I’ll go eat at a different restaurant. It’s America, you don’t get to tell people what to do.” Allen declared.
Even if his Hall of Fame bust had a mullet, Allen still wouldn’t cut his.
“Everybody who rocks a mullet and has lived the lifestyle would be like, ‘That dude’s a fraud, look at him up on the stage without his mullet.”
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