After Golden Tate’s Departure, Jared Allen Should Be High On Seahawks Priority List

Dec 22, 2013; Cincinnati, OH, USA; Cincinnati Bengals running back Gio Bernard (25) is tackled by Minnesota Vikings defensive end Jared Allen (69) in the third quarter of the game at Paul Brown Stadium. Cincinnati Bengals beat the Minnesota Vikings by the score of 42-14. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowksi-USA TODAY Sports

Unrestricted free agent Jared Allen is reportedly in talks with the Chicago Bears and Seattle Seahawks while planning on visiting the Denver Broncos soon.

While the Michael Bennett signing a couple days ago was huge for Seattle’s core, the losses of Chris Clemons and Red Bryant cannot be overlooked on the depth chart. Still, neither of them brought everything that Jared Allen brings. Clemons wasn’t the every down kinda guy that could play the run consistently and Bryant wasn’t anything resembling a sack-artist or even a minor disruption to quarterbacks in the pocket.

Jared Allen brings it all to the table. He’s not dominant against the run, but he is far more adequate than Clemons as an every-down end. He’s also not the best at getting to the quarterback, but he certainly would thrive in Seattle’s defensive scheme more than Bryant did. Heck, he’d thrive in Denver and Chicago as well. But here’s where the Seahawks may have just gained the upper hand on both clubs.

The Broncos are running out of cap-room after putting huge deals together for Aqib Talib, DeMarcus Ware and T.J. Ward, all on defense. With Peyton Manning on board for a short while longer it’s obvious their goal is to upgrade their Super Bowl runner-up status and hoist that Lambardi Trophy in the next two or three seasons and if anyone knows about wanting a late run at the championship it’s John Elway. But now with DeMarcus at one end and Von Miller causing havoc as well, there’s not much space for Allen.

Thus, it would seem like the Bears are the steepest competition. They know what Allen brings to the table, they’ve had to face him for the past many years two times per season and he’s terrorized their quarterbacks as much as anyone else’s in the league. No doubt they’ll be down to give him some good cash, but there are two things that could stop him from making the move. a) The Seahawks are closer to a Championship at this point, especially considering the moves the Lions are making and b) the Bears just put contracts up for LB D.J. Williams and DE Lamarr Houston.

Bottom line, Seattle is in prime position to get a great new fit with Allen’s special overall qualities, especially after the Lions signed Golden Tate on Wednesday. The Hawks are now relieved of necessary cap-space they would have needed for that, so they could easily target Allen’s contract demands. Even with two pretty good pieces at defensive end, the Seahawks are always looking for that third and fourth guy to put the pressure on for four quarters.

And while Seattle isn’t Arizona or Miami, it’s certainly a far superior climate to that of Chicago and Denver in the winter months, so that along with the whole Super Bowl play are probably desirable for Allen after playing in a dome for so long with a mediocre franchise.

If the Hawks do in fact make that move, we already know it won’t change their thought process towards the draft or any other piece of the puzzle. Probably would jack Hawk fans back up though. Michael Bennett and Cliff Avril probably wouldn’t mind either.