Dwayne Allen on career, last Colts’ win in Jacksonville

INDIANAPOLIS – Even former players forget the Colts haven’t won a game in Jacksonville since 2014.

“I was not aware of that,” said former Colts’ tight end Dwayne Allen.

“It’s all about how you respond to the challenges that come your way. You start off whatever it is, but so long as you have the right group of guys in the locker room, which I believe they do, then you have a shot, but it takes a lot of grit as Chuck Pagano used to say.”

Allen caught a one-yard touchdown in a 44-17 rout in that last Colts’ win at EverBank Stadium.

He caught eight TDs that season as the Horseshoes claimed their last AFC South title and advanced to the conference championship, but I like to think the highlight of his time in blue was sightseeing with me in London the summer before the Colts played the Jaguars at Wembley Stadium.

“Easily, easily the highlight of my career, especially now that I’m reminded we haven’t won the division since 2014 and we haven’t won in Jacksonville since then either,” Allen laughed. “The other highlight would have to be just the entire 2015 season that we hosted the ‘Dwayne Allen Show’ together. That was a huge highlight. That may have contributed to us not winning the division.”

Yes, Dwayne and I hosted a weekly television show in front of a live audience.

“That’s the cool thing about the sport of football,” Allen said. “It brings people together. It creates all these really unique experiences for us to enjoy, so I appreciate you coming alongside of me and supporting and carrying the show on your back, like the teammate and superstar you are.”

Allen played one more season in Indianapolis after the show, before the Colts traded him to the reigning Super Bowl champion Patriots.

“I get there and I’m pouting and Stephon Gilmore comes over and he’s like, ‘What’s good?’ I was like, ‘bro, I just signed a franchise deal last year and they traded me,'” Allen recalled. “He was like, ‘bro, they traded you to the world champs. The world champions wanted you.’ And I was like, ‘That’s right. I am with the world champions.’ Okay!”

Allen would become a world champion himself in New England.

He’s now the West Coast player director for the NFL Players’ Association and through it all, keeps a special place in his heart for the two teams that made his childhood dream come true.

“I played a kid’s game for a king’s ransom,” said Allen. “I am forever grateful to both the Irsay family and the Kraft family, my teammates who I was able to play alongside. It was an incredible experience, but fortunately, life goes on and I have this new chapter of serving the National Football League in its entirety.”

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