Inside the Tape With Zach Allen, the NFL's Most Disruptive Defensive Tackle

Jeffery Simmons. Cameron Heyward. Chris Jones. Dexter Lawrence. Nnamdi Madubuike. Leonard Williams. Quinnen Williams. Maybe a renewed Aaron Donald. Whomsoever you place in a list of the best defensive tackles in the NFL right now, if you don’t have Zach Allen of the Denver Broncos on that list, you’re wrong.

Yes, these things are generally subjective, but hear me out.

Over the last three seasons, per Sumer Sports, no interior defensive lineman has more total pressures than Allen’s 242, and Allen ranks fifth in sacks in that time with 23. And since Allen also has 103 run stops over the last three seasons, per Pro Football Focus, you know that he’s not a one-trick pony. Zach Allen isn’t just a run-stopper or a pass-rusher; he’s one of the best defensive linemen in the NFL. Period, full stop.

The Arizona Cardinals selected the 6-foot-4, 285-pound Allen in the third round of the 2019 draft out of Boston College, and though he struggled to get reps at first in his NFL career, he had a six-sack, 35-pressure season with the Cardinals in 2022, and that was the perfect time to do so. The Denver Broncos were all over Allen’s upside, giving him a three-year, $45.75 million contract with $32.5 million guaranteed in 2023, and upping the ante with a four-year, $102 million extension with $69.5 million guaranteed in 2025.

Now, Allen is one of the epicenters of a Broncos defense that ranked fifth in DVOA last season, and could be even better in 2026. If that is to be the case, the Broncos will need another season from Allen like he gave them in 2025, when he totaled 12 sacks and 83 total pressures in the regular season and postseason, per Pro Football Focus.

Based on his preseason performance, we shouldn’t worry too much about that.

“I think the first thing you’d say is, and some players have this, he has tremendous stamina,” Broncos head coach Sean Payton said in August when asked what makes Allen such a great player. “So, play 38 looks like [play] 8; play 60 still looks like [play] 8. So, that’s a big asset at a position where it’s hard. Then, I would say his intelligence and his quickness off the ball. He’ll win usually in the first second-and a-half of a rush, or he’ll win early. So that’s what makes him difficult.”

No argument here. I’ve been studying Allen since his Cardinals days, but there’s no way I’m going to know as much about what makes Zach Allen great as Zach Allen does. So, without further ado, here’s my tape session with Mr. Allen, in which we detail the architecture of an ideal interior defensive lineman, at a time when interior defensive linemen may be more important to defensive success than ever before.

Learning to be consistent

Doug Farrar: Zach, I used to call you underrated, but now that you’re making Pro Bowls and first-team All-Pros, and spoiler alert, I have a vote and I voted for you, so I’m one-50th responsible. Not really underrated anymore, but I’ve been watching your tape for so long and like, God, this guy is so good. We started talking, and you were interested in watching tape, which is awesome. So, I wanted to start by discussing a couple of numbers with you.

These are per Sumer Sports. Over the last three NFL seasons, Zach Allen leads the NFL in total pressures for players defined as interior defensive lineman with 242. Zach Allen also rates fifth in sacks among IDL over that time with 23. You are the world’s foremost Zach Allen expert. So can you tell me how Zach Allen has managed to be so ridiculously and consistently disruptive over that time period? Because I know [Broncos head] coach [Sean] Payton said about you in August that play 38 looks like play eight, and play 60 looks like play eight. You never take a play off.

How are you able to be this consistent?

Zach Allen: First off, thank you for having me. Thank you for all the kind words. And yeah, I think a lot of it just comes with coming to Denver, and the staff here. The coaching staff, and the training staff. They’ve really helped me, and my own personal team back in Connecticut, kind of just trying to be as consistent as possible throughout a game. Every year just kind of working on making sure my body’s in the best spot, best condition, best everything. And then coming to Denver, you know, I’ve been very fortunate to play with a lot of great players.

Being able to play with guys like [edge-rushers] Nik [Bonitto], [and Jonathon] Coop[er], and then inside having JFM (John Franklin-Myers, having [Malcolm] Roach, and having VJ [defensive coordinator Vance Joseph], of course. I’ve been really fortunate to just be in a really great situation. I just try to take advantage of it and, um, you know, just keep on building off of it and hopefully have a great 2026.

DF: Well, judging from what you did to the Packers backfield in the preseason, I think you’re okay. It was like, pressure after pressure after pressure after run stop. Then they just started holding you like, “Okay, I don’t know what to do. Take his arm and grab it.”

Lessons from the master

DF: I wanted to go back for a minute to your time with the Cardinals from 2019 through 2022. They took you in the third round of the 2019 draft out of Boston college. And I believe in 2021 and 2022, you played with some guy named J.J. Watt, who some people may have heard of. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that this is when your star started to rise.

What did J.J. teach you about how to be that guy in the middle of a defense? Cause obviously he knew, and obviously, you know, and I would imagine that you learned a few things from J.J. Watt.

ZA: You know, he played a huge role. I think you hit the nail on the head. There’s definitely a correlation between when I kind of started figuring it out, and him coming there. I was very fortunate to play with him. Obviously in Arizona, I got a lot of one-on-ones because the attention was going to him.

But also too, he was so generous with his knowledge and his time and everything like that. I was really blessed to play with him, and it’s kind of crazy now, thinking it’s Year 8, and it’s kind of my job to be passing that knowledge down, and helping guys out in the same way. But I you know, think the world of him, and I’m so fortunate to have had him as a teammate, and to call him a friend for life.

DF: Is there like one predominant thing he taught you that you have carried with you to this day? Like in every game, “I have to do this thing that J.J. told me, because it just changes everything?”

ZA: Well, he made me a lot smarter of a player. Just like taking your time and taking your breath and kind of recognizing what [offensive linemen] are doing.

‘Cause you know, when you’re a young guy, you’re basically trying to defend every single player on every single down. He really kind of helped me break it down. Um, to, and also I had fortunate, I also had really good coaches — Matt Burke, who’s with the Texans now, everyone’s seeing what he’s doing. And then Brentson Buckner, who played at a really high level, they kind of took the same thing. It was kind of like, “Hey, you’re only going to see these two blocks,” or “You’re only going to see this type of protection.” J.J. was huge too, because, you know, obviously everybody talks about the work ethic, and everything like that. And he really carried me along within those two years.

It was really cool, just, you know, the legend of the game, how he worked and everything like that. He even said, “When I was young, I did these things, this was a mistake. Don’t make that same mistake.” I was really, really fortunate and blessed to be with him.

DF: And you’re going to listen to J.J. Watt when he talks. Well, let’s get to the plays here.

Run-stopping the Chargers

DF: This is week 18 against the Chargers last year, 7:42 left in the third quarter. I wanted to start with a run stop and tackle for a two-yard loss, because a lot of guys who are really good pass rush was inside, kind of get short-shifted as run-stoppers. And that’s not really you. So, this is your angle to center Andre James here, kind of that 45-degree pitch. That old Stunt 4-3 the Steelers used to do. And what you do to Andre James on the way to running back Jaret Patterson is… well, it’s rude, quite frankly. I mean, that’s just, that’s pure bull-rush. He’s taking one arm, and you’ve got Patterson with the other.

So you’re what? 6-foot-4, 285 coming out of college? Have you beefed up at all?

ZA: Right now, I probably play around 290. I didn’t want to get… my whole thing when I put on the weight was to make sure I didn’t lose any power or quickness or speed. As a D-lineman, I’m of the belief that there’s multiple ways to skin a cat. There’s great players who play read technique, but for me, I just want to kind of use my strength. And for me, it’s just getting off the ball, and just trying to be a violent player and disruptive. Once I had that influence from Coach Buckner, and Coach Burke, you know, kind of attack-style guys, something just clicked for me. Where it’s like, you know what? I can’t be wrong. Because if I just get my hands on the alignment right away, [the offensive lineman is] basically just going to take me there.

I mean, I pride myself — if I do one-on-one blocks, I gotta win them. And luckily on this play, it worked.

DF: You got your hands inside, but I remember talking to Jason Kelce, not a big guy either, who was a master of leverage. And he had his thoughts. What are your secrets to leverage? Because even at 290, that’s not, you know, you’re not Dexter Lawrence. Dexter outweighs you by about 50 pounds on a diet day. So when you’re a “lighter” defensive tackle, how do you get leverage like this?

ZA: Yeah. I think… definitely pad level. Being a tall guy, it’s tough, but that’s why I feel like when I attack, I’m able to keep my pads down. Also the hand placement — I think you were a hundred percent right there. You know, if I get my hands inside, and get to extension, I don’t think anybody in this league can block me.

That’s something that I work every single day. Just try to get that 2-3-yard knockback, especially on fan blocks. Last year, we didn’t really see too many of those. Because the year before on stretch plays, playing that attack style was really helpful. Last year was kind of an adjustment of playing tighter alignments, but still being able to get off. But you’re going to see a lot of open-side counter and stuff like that. So, it’ll be interesting to see how this year teams try to attack us in the run game. If they go back to stretch, or if they stay with gaps — the open side gap scheme. It’ll be a fun year and, you know, either way, we’ll be ready for it.

“It’s almost like playing basketball on grass”

DF: Let’s get to a pass rush rep here. This is versus the Texans, and a sack of C.J. Stroud. You’re up against Laken Tomlinson, the left guard here, and this does not go well for him.

One thing I’ve noticed about you off the snap, and obviously you’re not the only guy to do this, but the foot fakes, like a receiver would try to shake a corner off the line of scrimmage. What is the advantage to that? And how have you developed that… not a trick, but a technique?

ZA: I consider pass-rushing, and mentioning wide receivers, I think they’re very similar. It’s almost like you’re playing basketball on grass. So for me, you know, I’ll even watch Kyrie [Irving], guys who are great ball-handlers, especially in slow motion to see the breaking force on their jabs or kind of what they’re doing. Just to get that feeling of, you’re a point guard, and they’re defending you. Just trying to get it that way. So I’ll mix it up, kind of do that just in my free time. Just try to get inspiration, and new ideas.

DF: Are you reading Tomlinson here? Are you waiting for him to kind of tilt his shoulder to one side? So you know, you have leverage inside or out?

ZA: It’s more just feeling body position. And it’s funny because in this game, I had a bad flu; didn’t sleep the night before. And so this play, I came to the sideline and guys were like, “What did you do? Like, what were you thinking?” And I was like, “I honestly wasn’t thinking; I was just trying to breathe and staying awake.” It’s funny how I come up with stuff that I’ve never really done before, but it works. I don’t know if it’s a flow state or whatever it is, just having an empty mind. So there, I’d even correct myself. Maybe I got a little too choppy with it.

It’s kind of a fine line of, you don’t want to just get on too fast, but you also don’t want to just be stuttering in place. And they’re just waiting on you. He did a good job recovering on it, but I was able to get my extension, like we talked about with the last long arm.

DF: Well, that’s the long-arm. I always think of Von Miller, because he was to me the best at that. He would get his arm out,and Von was 240 pounds, and he’d push you like he was 300. It was just amazing.

ZA: I mean, that’s the thing with the interior. It’s funny. It’s almost like if you go too quickly, you won’t get the sack because the quarterback has direct vision on you. So it’s almost like on a win, you know, we were joking about today, like Maliek Collins, like I have so much respect for him.

I joke with Maliek. I’m like, “You’re literally too good. You could have 20 sacks if you just didn’t win so fast.”

DF: So go into that a little bit, winning too fast. With running backs, if you hit the hole too soon, and you don’t wait for your blocks to develop, you lose initiative. Is that kind of the same thing?

ZA: I think it’s more just quarterbacks, especially today. There’s such a heightened sense of, sacks are drive killers, like they’re almost like turnovers. And I think it’s the attention has been more, you know, sacks are a quarterback stat. Especially if you’re on the interior, they have a direct line on you. There’s no blind side per se. It’s funny. My best pass rushing moves are pressures, or they’re not even pressures because the quarterback just throws it away or just dumps it off. And then my sacks, it’s like my sack, like highlight is not like, you know, the sexiest move. It’s like, Oh, I got blocked and I converted the power, you know, a double team that just happened later in efforts. It’s stuff like that. So, it’s kind of interesting to see what actually like kind of works and what doesn’t.

DF: Well, and they’re doubling, is that JFM there? 98?

ZA: Yeah. Yeah. I was very fortunate.

DF: I’ll get into him in a minute when we get to the stunts, because he’s one of my favorite, like underrated guys, nobody talks about, and he’s been that way for years. They’re doubling him, which helps you.

ZA: Yeah. No, I was fortunate. I mean, kind of pick your poison. If you double me, then JFM gets the one-on-one and vice versa. Losing him will be a tough loss [Franklin-Myers is now with the Tennessee Titans], but we’ve got Roach, we’ve got [other defensive linemen] and they’re all very capable. I expect no drop-off.

DF: You got Tomlinson here with one arm. Are you going up to bat the ball if he throws at that point? Are you just trying to get into him?

ZA: Right. It was third down, red zone. So I was thinking possibly, you know, just quick throw, just, you know, don’t [let them get] the field goal. You know, [they’re trying to] get an easy completion. So, just try to get in the throwing lane, and luckily, it worked out.

DF: Must’ve been that J.J. SWAT technique you learned from the master.

ZA: Exactly.

Stunting to success

DF: Play number three is the stunt pressure. This is you and 98 is JFM, John Franklin-Myers, who I just, I love this guy. So let’s go to the stunt, and this is the drive in the divisional round where the Bills are down 30-27. They’re trying to win it. 37 seconds left in the fourth quarter. You guys weren’t having that. First and 10 here, you and JFM engage in a T/T stunt where you engage left guard David Edwards before Franklin-Myers gets to him.

And the stuff you did to center Connor McGovern here was just rude, man. Just push him over. I mean, that’s ridiculous. So let’s watch this stunt. Take me through the mechanics of a T/T stunt here with you and JFM.

ZA: Yeah, it’s funny. This one was a called one. Usually, honestly, a lot of our stunts that people talk about on tape, those ended up just being naturals. But JFM and I had such a good thing where, more times than not, we knew where the center was sliding, so we could manipulate it that way. And then, he was so unselfish, and that’s why it was so fun playing with him. We both accepted like, “Hey, this game, I might have the hard downs if I’m getting more of the slider, you know, same with him.”

You see some guys where, if they’re getting the slide, they just get aggravated. Then, they’ll just rush high and create these huge rush lanes. Put too much stress on the other D-tackle, or the quarterback’s just able to get out. But he and I, we just tried to play it so honest, but I think the thing that helped with this was that nobody rushed it. I think we took our time with it. This is kind of like I was saying on the last one… I mean, Josh is one of the best quarterbacks in football for a reason. He’s so aware. Once he kind of sees that pressure, it’s just all out.

JFM, he did a great job kind of stealing the center’s eyes. Letting the pick kind of come through.

DF: Oh yeah. He crosses his face and he goes with him. So then he’s focused on JFM and you just kind of push him down and off to the quarterback. I mean, he’s a good player, but it’s got to be fun when you just push a guy down.

ZA: No, Connor, he’s a hell of a player. I’ve known him since college. I mean, Buffalo, we play them again this year. It’s going to be Christmas Day. A lot of respect to those guys. It’s going to be a tough one, but luckily, it’s a home game for us.

Beating double-teams, Part 1

DF: So, this is Week 7 against the Giants. 12:55 left the first quarter. I wanted to ask you about beating double teams. You guys run a lot of five-man fronts and overloads, which are designed to prevent doubles. But when you get them, you tend to beat them. One way to beat a double is what you do here. You’ve got Andrew Thomas at left tackle, and John Runyan at a left guard, and… well, you can go through a guy or you can just do this. And again, Mr. Watt used to do this all the time. All right. Just a rebound.

ZA: Well, I may not get through in time. Maybe it’s quick game and I’ll just do this rebound later.

DF: So at what point do you know, okay, I’m probably not going to get there. Is there a certain, because I would imagine if you put your arm up, you’re, I mean, you’re losing half your leverage because you’re not going to have both arms on, you know, one guy each. So at what point in a play like this, do you decide, all right, I probably am not going to get there. I’ve just got to get my arm out.

ZA: If you have a double team like this, you know, even here, like I’d say like correcting it — just try to get a little bit more extension so I could have better vision and then kind of have two arms [blocking]. But yeah, there’s definitely, you know, on double teams or, you know, there’s sometimes, like I said, like red zone, you know, or you know, we started seeing towards the end of the year, a lot of teams attack us with quick game just to kind of, you know, prevent us from rushing.

DF: Well, there’s you, and JFM, and Bonitto, and Jonathon Cooper. What else are they going to do?

ZA: Exactly. Is it boot or play-action? You still want to try to find a way to affect the game. Hopefully, you have good hand-eye coordination and just get a hand in the passing lane or something like that.

Beating double-teams (Slight Return)

DF: Okay, final play here is this is Week 4 against the Bengals. First play of the game, I believe. Here’s another double team. You don’t engage as much here as you’re looking to [move across the line]. This is an interesting play, because I’ve always wondered, like, right there you engage, but it almost looks like your intent is to cross [left guard Dylan] Fairchild’s face and go inside, as opposed to staying there and beating the double team.

You give him that shake move, and then you’re inside. Was that intended? Like, this is what you’re going to do? This is going to be your technique from the start? Or did you see something that made you go, okay, I’m not going to try and knife through them. I’m going to go around?

ZA: That one, [the protection] felt soft. So I knew it was play-action. Luckily, I recognized it kind of early. With play-action, I think there’s still an opportunity, [with] counter momentum. Their feet aren’t set there. They’re not in a true pass-blocking kind of mode. So there’s times where it’s you can lead one way, and get a guy to commit and come across.

Teams are going to try to find new ways to attack us. They’re not just going to 5-0 everything and five-step, seven-step drop on us. Hopefully, Kansas City does that Monday night, but it’s probably not going to happen. So for us, you’ve got to just, like I said, find ways to get there.

The men in the middle are more important than ever

DF: During Super Bowl week, I was talking with Seahawks and Patriots coaches and players about how there are so many more light boxes, and so much more two-high coverage. You guys are more important than ever if you’re going to keep your defense regular and straight, because if you don’t have those guys in the middle, who can just soak it up, [opponents will] run all over you. Do you think we’re at a point where interior defensive linemen are more important than they’ve ever been, given the way defenses are set up schematically?

ZA: I think definitely, Obviously the contracts, especially this offseason, you’ve kind of seen the emphasis put on that. I mean, the line interior guys are up there with… not exactly with edge-rushers, but they’re getting there. They’re climbing up that way pretty soon.

DF: Well, you got a nice one last year, my friend.

ZA: Yeah, yeah, exactly. So yeah, I think it’s definitely becoming an emphasis. And I think the stat that… if you’ve looked at the four teams in the AFC and NFC Championship games, those four interior duos were the top four interior duos and pressures created. And then, like you said, doing the run stuffing, too.

So, yeah. That’s the cool thing about being in Denver is, we don’t just have a great D-line. We have a great offensive line. It’s a really special place to be.

I think the emphasis and the cool thing is guys like you are doing, you know, showing the All 22 tape, and helping educate people. Because before, you watch a TV copy, it’s kind of hard to get a full understanding of that. But, you know, bringing that kind of awareness to like, hey, this is where games are being won now. It’s just growing the game in such a cool way. So it’s been really fun as a player to see guys like you educate fans, and make fans smarter, and everything like that.

DF: Well, I appreciate that. I mean, I like watching defense more than I like watching offense. It’s just how I’m wired. Even though I was a little kid, I was wired that way.

Speaking of offensive linemen, are there one or two guys who when you go up against, I can probably beat them, but I’m really going to have to eat my Wheaties. Who are the toughest offensive linemen you faced in your career?

ZA: The one that kind of forced me to grow up was playing against Trent Williams when I was in Arizona. I played that 4i [position], and playing a 4i versus Trent, it was tough. That definitely taught me. I have a great appreciation for him, and that forced me to grow up. I remember the first game I ever played against him was kind of like, OK, this is different. And that next year, that was definitely kind of the motivator. And luckily, I was able to figure it out then. So a lot of respect for him.

Interior-wise, I’d say Quenton Nelson and Joe Thuney, I think both guys, you know, they do a hell of a job. Tyler Smith’s up there. And then luckily, we’ve got Quinn Meinerz. The way he hits the run, it gets you going. I think an underrated guy, honestly, is [guard] Ben Powers, our guy. I always tell him that he’s the best pass-blocking guard in football or at least one of them, because you watch what he did. I mean, he locks down a lot of guys, a lot of good players, does a lot of good things.

DF: He’s got good technique, but he’ll just waste people like technique, schmechnique. I’m just going to kick your ass and move on.

Yeah, he’s kind of that perfect combo where it’s like technically sound, but has that nasty streak. So that’s why training camp is, you know, it’s obviously a grind here, but we’re really fortunate to kind of keep it going against each other.

What’s the most annoying thing about defending Patrick Mahomes? “Everything.”

DF: So, Monday night against Chiefs, you try to run it forward. How excited are you to get this thing going? Because you guys were… man, if [quarterback] Bo [Nix] doesn’t get hurt [in the playoffs], who knows?

ZA: We’re really excited to start the beginning of the game plan. And yeah, it’s there’s a really good energy and buzz. We’re just so excited. And obviously, division opponent, great team, you know, so much respect for the guys over there. So it’s going to be a battle and to do it in prime time is really cool. So we’re excited.

DF: What is the most annoying part about trying to defend Patrick Mahomes?

ZA: Everything. Everything. The thing with him is like, obviously, everyone sees like the athletic ability and the throws, but I really think he’s one of the smartest quarterbacks. He calls out stuff at the line of scrimmage — like if we have certain stuff, he sees it. It’s really impressive to have a guy of that caliber … he really is like a five-tool player in baseball. He’s got it all. He’s a stud, and it’s going to be a challenge. Hopefully, we do a good job.

DF: Well, Zach Allen, thanks for taking the time, man. I know you’re busy getting ready for the 2026 season, and thanks so much. We’ll talk to you down the road.

ZA: Yeah, of course. Thanks for having me. This is great.