Rams OL Brian Allen Played Through 'Partially Torn UCL' Last Season

Allen revealed that he played the second half of the season with a partially torn UCL.

Author:
Connor Zimmerlee
Publish date:
Apr 22, 2022 4:00 PM EDT

Every athlete who steps on the field or court will want to play an entire season injury-free.

Unfortunately, injuries are part of the game and can often be hard to avoid.

Very few players on the Rams roster knows that better than Brian Allen, who has suffered a litany of injuries over the last few seasons.

Allen missed half of the 2019 season due to a knee injury which would eventually cost Allen his 2020 starting spot to Austin Blythe. While he got his starting job back in 2021, it was yet another injury riddled season for Allen.

He would play only one snap against the Jaguars before leaving the game with an MCL sprain, an injury that would cause him to miss the following game as well. Allen would also leave the Rams' Week 16 game against the Vikings due to another knee injury after just 18 plays.

While Allen dealt with lingering knee injuries all season long that caused him to miss time, he dealt with an elbow injury as well that he continued to play through.

Brian Allen

“On the third or fourth play of the Titans game, I partially tore my UCL in my elbow, which is like Tommy John, and nothing that needed surgery or anything like that,” Allen said to reporters. “But it was a minor tear that was kind of aggravating. But it’s the NFL. Everyone’s hurt and dealing with something. I think Tennessee was Week 8 or 9 so that was the first time in the season I was facing adversity with my body. Just one of those things that’s annoying – kind of annoying to have to snap with a brace with your arm locked out and things like that, but you figure it out and get through it and the situation is the situation. Just keep getting it stronger. It stopped bothering me probably around the middle of the playoffs. Felt good. I think I took the brace off like Week 15 or 16 maybe, so I wore it for a while.”

There is no telling if 2022 will be Allen's first injury-free season in the last few years, as with his injury track record it is tricky to predict.

However, if he can stay healthy this season, he will be a key member of the Rams' offensive line.