CFHOF Profile: Damon Allen
In Canadian football 12 players take the field for each side and fight it out in the one sport that values team more than ever. If one player misses their assignment the entire play can be blown causing a big defensive play or a Touchdown. It is the ultimate team sport where every player must do their part for things to go right. Despite it being the ultimate team sport there are some positions that can mean the difference between a good team and a great team. In the CFL that there is no position that has a bigger impact than that of the Quarterback. The CFL is a passing league in the truest sense as the rules are made to allow the passing game to flourish. Because of the QB because a central figure in every team they are widely looked to as the leaders in the CFL. It has been seen year after year that a good QB can be the difference from a last place team and a Grey Cup winning team. Every team is always looking for the next great QB to lead their team to the championship. There are plenty of QBs who can play well in the CFL and who can help their team win. Every now and then though, a team will get lucky as they find a QB who is once in a lifetime. These QBs are the best of the best and not only win Grey Cups but pursue records. Damon Allen was one of these quarterbacks as he was a unique talent that only comes around once in an era. Allen is that QB that every team looks for as he retired as the best QB to play professional football. Year after year Allen helped teams win as the top QB in the league and every team he went to he made better.
Damon Allen was another American football player who rarely got the attention that other QBs got. He would break records at Cal State Fullerton yet never got much of a look from the NFL even with his relation to Marcus Allen. Instead he looked to carve out his own legacy in Canada when he signed a free agent contract with the Edmonton Eskimos. He was not an immediate star as he would sit and learn from another great QB in Matt Dunigan. Then in 1987 he would replace Dunigan in the Grey Cup and add the first piece to his legend. Allen would lead the Eskies to the win in the grey Cup and win his first Grey Cup offensive MVP award. Allen would move on to Ottawa where he would become only the second QB to rush for over 1,000 in CFL history. Allen continue to move on and continued to pile on the statistics and the accomplishments. He would continue to win Grey Cups as a member of the Edmonton Eskimos, B.C. Lions, and the Toronto Argonauts. He would go on to win the Grey Cup Offensive MVP two more times as he led his teams. It did not stop at the championships though as Damon Allen achieved something so much greater while in Toronto. After an amazing career Allen had gone to Toronto to play out his final seasons and remained one of the best QBs in the CFL. On September 4th, 2006 the Argonauts would take on the Hamilton Ti-Cats for the Labour Day Classic. Allen made a simple shovel pass to Arland Bruce III to break Warren Moon’s all-time passing record. It would be the 70,554th yard that Allen would pass for in his career which put him atop the all time list. Not only was it the best in the CFL but it was the best in Pro Football above people like Dan Marino and Brett Favre. Allen would retire with that record, later broken by Anthony Calvillo, and as one of the best QBs of in football. With all of the accomplishments and the records Allen has no other place to go than into the Hall of Fame as he will end up in his rightful place among the best of the best in football.
Damon Allen, QB (1985-2007)
B.C. Lions (7 years)
56.4% cmp
72,381 yds
394 TD
83.8 rtg
Eastern All-Star (1991, 2005)
Western All-Star (1999)
CFL All-Star (2005)
Most Outstanding Player (2005)
Grey Cup Champion (1987, 1993, 2000, 2004)
Grey Cup Most Valuable Player (1987, 1993, 2004)
Also Played for Edmonton, Ottawa, Memphis, Hamilton, and Toronto
The Sport Addiction 
hopefully the new tv deal will allow the CFL to raise the salry cap just a bit to be able to pay these QBs top dollar ( 500k ) and still be able to afford to properly play the rest of the players at other positions. You can see the problems that Ricky Ray and his 450K have caused. Edmonton had to unload him to buld a more balanced team where as the Argos signing Ray have forced then to cut corners at the worst positions for an all star QB the O Line.