2013 NFL Hall of Fame Inductees: Highlighting Greatness of Larry Allen

Larry Allen's freakish blend of size, strength and athleticism will land him in Canton, Ohio on Saturday, Aug. 3 to be enshrined in the Hall of Fame. 

It's not fair to say Allen revolutionized the guard position because no one else has been able to do what he could.

For starters, Allen was massive. Standing 6'3" and playing at a questionably listed (and not in the too light way) 325 pounds, he could still move like this: 

Coming into the league in the second round with the 46th selection in the 1994 draft by the Dallas Cowboys, Allen stood out on the field. At that time, 300 pounds was still a massive guard.

Still, what typically is mentioned first with Allen is his legendary strength. 

Here he is making his teammates go nuts by benching 700 pounds:

Knowing that Allen could bench press a tank makes this next crazy story believable.

Coming out of Sonoma State after having surrendered only one sack, Allen still wasn't going to be a part of the East-West Shrine Game. His coach (Frank Scalercio) got him a tryout of sorts.

This quote provided by Jim Thomas of CantonRep.com  Scalercio tells us how Allen did:

"

There were these two big defensive linemen for the other team. They took out our TE, then pointed at Larry and said, "You’re next."

I called time and said, "That was the wrong thing to say guys."

Larry hit the one guy so hard in the chest, the guy was out cold. They brought out the ambulance and strapped him down, they weren't sure how he was.

"

That talent quickly translated onto the NFL field. He made the Pro Bowl his second year and was All-Pro by his third. 

In his 14-year career, he made the Pro Bowl a total 11 times and went onto be a first-team All-Pro six times. 

Allen played both guard and tackle, but spent most of his time at guard mauling holes which helped pave the way for Emmitt Smith to rush for more yards than any man in NFL history.

He spent his first 12 years with the Cowboys and won a Super Bowl in 1995. He then finished off his career with a two-year stint as a San Francisco 49er.

On top of everything, Allen was also insanely durable. He played in 16 games in all but three of his seasons. 

He retired in 2007 and made the Pro Bowl in 2006.

Still, after having gone through all of this, the best judge of Allen's standing as an all-time legend comes from how he was viewed by other players.

Perhaps the best take on that came from former offensive lineman and NFL legend John Madden, with the quote provided by Todd Archer of ESPN:

"

You didn’t sleep easy the night before, hoping you get to play against Larry Allen. They knew it. There’s no pro football player that has a fear of another guy that plays on that level, but he was so doggone strong and there wasn’t much you could do against him. 

"

Madden goes on to mention that there was nothing Allen couldn't do as an offensive lineman and mentions him with the likes of John Hanna and Gene Upshaw as the best guard to ever play.

Allen raised the bar for guards in the NFL and deserves to be called the best of his generation. He also carried himself as a professional with love for the game.

His legacy was cemented long before making it into Canton, and now it is enshrined.