Any defensive end will tell you that it’s hard to beat the feeling of breaking through the opposing offensive line, surging toward the quarterback and taking down the signal caller yards behind the line of scrimmage.
Jared Allen spent six seasons with the Vikings, during which he recorded 85.5 of his 136 career sacks. He knows well the rush of adrenaline and a crowd’s roaring response – but he considers his off-field contributions to be much more rewarding.
It all started with a 2009 USO tour to United States military bases in the Middle East. A couple of years prior to the trip, Allen had been made aware of a disparity that existed in adaptive housing for veterans but at the time was heavily committed to another nonprofit.