The San Diego Chargers were saddened to learn of the passing of Chuck Allen, a key member of the 1963 AFL Championship team and a member of the team's Hall of Fame.
A 28th-round draft choice from the University of Washington, Allen suited up for the Chargers from 1961-69. He also played for the Pittsburgh Steelers and Philadelphia Eagles, and served as assistant general manager for the Seattle Seahawks for more than a decade.
Allen intercepted 21 passes during his time in San Diego, which were the most by any Chargers linebacker and the fifth-highest total in franchise history when he was inducted into the Chargers Hall of Fame in 1984. He was the eighth player inducted, following Lance Alworth, Ron Mix, Paul Lowe, Barron Hilton, Keith Lincoln, Walt Sweeney, Ernie Ladd and John Hadl.
"Chuck is a fabulous guy; a perfect individual," Hall of Fame Head Coach Sid Gillman once said. "He was about as fine a linebacker at his size that you could find."
"He really kind of set the tone as a middle linebacker in the early years of the Chargers," added Former Steelers Head Coach Chuck Noll, who was a defensive coach with the Chargers in the early 1960s. "Chuck didn't make any mistakes, and he had that kind of quiet leadership that you like."
