The world was saddened last week by the passing of Pro Football Hall of Famer Larry Allen, who died at the age of 52. Fellow Hall of Famer and Colorado assistant coach Warren Sapp was among those stung by the news because of the time he spent competing against Allen in the NFL. Sapp recently spoke to our Uncle Neely about the fondness and respect he’s always had for Allen.
As a player Sapp says with a few exceptions he pretended every offensive guard he was facing was Larry Allen to make sure he always gave his best effort.
“Because Larry Allen was the standard by which I judge every offensive guard in the National Football League except for three others, and their names were Randall McDaniel, Will Shields and Brian Waters. If you weren’t those three I made you Larry Allen that week because I was not going to lower my standard and get into a fight with you. Because I’m here (showing his hands in an elevated position) and you’re here (showing his hands in a lowered position). You’re going to raise your level up because I’m coming. And then if I come down and say it ain’t Larry, now we got a dog fight. I’m going to play like Larry and you’ll never get there.
Both Sapp and Allen were first ballot Hall of Famers after their careers concluded. The competition in the trenches wasn’t the only time the two faced off. Sapp recalls a bench press contest at the Pro Bowl one season.
“I’m at the lineman challenge where we’re on the incline and it’s me and him in the finals, he looked at me and said, “You don’t like to lift?”
Sapp continues with the story.
“Well, he put 415 on this thing. Like it wasn’t nothing. They were like Warren okay it’s your turn. I said, no, no, no, he just won. I’m in second place.”
Sapp conceded that he wasn’t going to bench 415 pounds on the incline press. He admits he wasn’t even going to do 315 pounds. Sapp knew his strengths as a player, and matching bench press stats with Larry Allen wasn’t one of them.
But despite the superior strength, Allen gave Sapp the ultimate compliment one competitor could give another. Sapp continues on with another fond memory.
“And I remember it so vividly because it was Gil Bryant, the scout from the Cowboys basically the one who invented the combine. He looked at Larry Allen and said who’s the toughest defensive lineman you ever went up against? Larry looked at him and said he’s (Sapp) the only one that had more one sack against me. I was validated I don’t need to have nobody else say anything about Warren Sapp but that one,” Sapp said.
Allen was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2013 and a member of the All-Decade team both in the 1990s and 2000s. Allen is one of three Dallas Cowboys in team history with double-digit Pro Bowl selections. Allen finished his career with the 49ers and earned his 11th Pro Bowl in 2006.
