Controversy and Jared Allen? You Don’t Say…

Cold, Hard Football Facts (CHFF) recently crowned Minnesota Vikings defensive end, Jared Allen “the most valuable player that doesn’t play quarterback.” The article provides a case for the rise of the Chiefs’ and Vikings’ defenses with Jared Allen at the defensive end position. CHFF puts forward a strong argument, including this tidbit about the all-important third-down defense:

The Allen impact was most noticeable in third-down defense: the Chiefs fell from No. 1 in 2007 to No. 31 in 2008; the Vikings improved from No. 18 in 2007 to No. 4 in 2008.

Naturally, not everyone is going to agree with CHFF’s assessment of the “Allen impact.” Aaron Nagler of CheeseheadTV offers his take:

Look, Allen is an insanely talented football player. And all the points [CHFF Founder Kerry J.] Byrne makes about how Allen’s arrival elevated the effectiveness of the entire position group are well founded. But saying he’s the “most valuable non-quarterback” and then closing out the argument by citing how he beat up on some extremely questionable opposition to seal his case, well, that’s just absurd.

Just to add another angle to the “As The Mullet Grows” soap opera. The good people over at Arrowhead Addict posted an article arguing who got the better deal in the Jared Allen trade. Of course, most people would say the Vikings, but writer Patrick Allen makes a case for the Chiefs.

So far, in my opinion, the Vikings won the trade. So far.

The Vikings got a known quantity in Allen. He has continued to play well in Minnesota and is a big part of their plans to win a Super Bowl before Brett Favre starts to get discounts for being a senior citizen.

As for the Chiefs, they got 3 draft picks in the 2008 NFL Draft. They got picks #17, 73 and 82nd overall.

Those picks turned out to be Brandon Albert (17th) , Jamaal Charles(73rd) and Dujaun Morgan(82nd).

Patrick Allen goes on to tell Chiefs’ fans not to rush to judgment too quickly.

The common belief is that it generally takes 3 years before you can really judge a draft pick. Well, for the Charles, Albert and Morgan, 2010 is year 3.We should be able to fairly judge the trade following the 2010 season.

I think this trade is going to end up being a win for the Chiefs.

So? Is Jared Allen “the most valuable player that doesn’t play quarterback?” Who got the better deal in the Jared Allen trade? Why does Cap’n Crunch always cut the roof of your mouth? Let me know your thoughts in the comment section.