NFL: Keenan Allen – why coaches love record-breaker over star receivers

Allen was selected by the Chargers – then based in San Diego – in the third round of the 2013 draft, but he has outlasted many of the wide receivers that were drafted after him.

“This record basically speaks to his consistency and his availability,” said McGeoghan, who was the Chargers’ wide receivers coach from 2018-2020.

“But his intelligence and his sophistication are what has allowed him to catch that number of passes over time. He’s great on third down, he’s one of the best chain movers in the history of the game.”

Allen currently has 11,563 receiving yards – fifth among current players, behind DeAndre Hopkins, Mike Evans, Travis Kelce and Davante Adams.

Along with Tyreek Hill and Stefon Diggs, they are the six current players to have claimed more receiving touchdowns than Allen (69).

Schecter said that for him to reach 1,000 receptions before them “shows how reliable a target he is for his quarterbacks”, yet he has a smaller profile than his peers listed above and is not lauded by fans for being a “big-time, flashy receiver”.

But McGeoghan said that Allen is “the most heralded guy that I’ve ever coached when it comes to the industry professionals”.

He added: “I would say that within the industry, when I go to speak at clinics and there’s nothing but coaches in there, all the people want to talk about is Keenan and his route craft, his ability to separate [from defenders], his understanding of zones, his release at the line of scrimmage. He’s just so refined and such a craftsman of the receiver position.”