Keenan Allen thrives in Pierceless offense, 6/63/1

Allen was limited in practice throughout the week and listed as questionable. Now he’s been ruled out for Week 4 against the Commanders. Josh Downs is locked in as the Colts top wide receiver this week and Tyler Warren should also see a boost in value with Allen sidelined.

This one went under the radar. Allen was limited on Wednesday with a “rest” designation. He remained limited on Thursday, but the Colts tacked a groin injury next to his name while maintaining the “rest” designation and hope for a Week 4 appearance along the way. Allen was downgraded on Friday, unable to practice, and should be considered truly questionable to face the Commanders this week. Were he to sit, No. 1 wide receiver Josh Downs would get a helpful target share boost.

The most notable aspect to come from Allen’s modest performance was the fact that he really didn’t see an increase in emphasis in the offense following the departure of Alec Pierce at the end of the first quarter. Pierce’s initial X-rays came back negative on the same heel he had surgery on this offseason, but will get further testing Monday to diagnose the severity of the injury. Either way, Allen can safely be returned to the waiver wire in most fantasy formats.

This stems from Allen’s pair of misdemeanor charges related to a drunk driving arrest that occurred in August. A three-game suspension is the minimum allowed for a DUI or similar arrest under the current collective bargaining agreement. As Schefter notes, the league can make the suspension longer, and Allen’s blood-alcohol content was three times the legal limit. The NFL will wait for the legal process to play out before stepping in with a suspension of its own. That could take several months depending on how things unfold in court.

Allen was arrested for DWI in late August and could face a suspension from the NFL. When that suspension could come down is anyone’s guess. For now Allen will continue playing significant snaps for the Colts. In Week 1 against the Ravens, Allen caught all six of his targets for 32 yards while running a route on 73 percent of the team’s drop backs.

Allen did all of his damage in the short area of the field, as the veteran receiver never totaled more than nine yards on any of his six catches. Allen averaged fewer than four air yards per target on the day. It’s far too early to say Allen can be dropped from fantasy rosters, even if this was just a PPR scam, but there’s no need to jam him into your lineups in Week 2 against the Chiefs.

In other words, there will be no in-house punishment for Allen being arrested for DWI and DWI endangering a person on Sunday morning. It’s a hard-to-augur game, as we are not entirely sure if the Ravens defense is going to take a turn for the better and if Daniel Jones is NFL-healthy rather than training-camp-healthy, but Allen should have enough of a role to land in the WR4 ranks at the very least.

Per Maske, the NFL’s substances of abuse policy outlines a three-game suspension for a “first offense of a violation of the law involving alcohol,” which would encompass the two DWI charges levied against Allen early Sunday morning. There is no telling when a potential suspension would be on the table for the veteran receiver, leaving fantasy managers in the dark as they contemplate additional variance associated with his profile. The additional details surrounding Allen’s specific arrest could lessen league discipline as well considering he was parked illegally and not in the act of driving, but the law is clear in that any person sitting in a vehicle with keys is considered with intent to operate while intoxicated. More to come as the most recent saga plays out.

The Colts released a statement noting that they were aware of the charges and are in the information gathering process. Allen was arrested in downtown Indianapolis after the Colts’ final preseason game around 1AM ET. More updates to come, we’re sure, but obviously this is not a great look for Allen.

The new was first reported by NFL Insider Jordan Schultz. With the Colts in need of a starting caliber receiver given Alec Pierce’s slow recovery from offseason ankle surgery, Allen was an obvious fit. He was the best wide receiver still available and with the news that the Saints lost Jordyn Tyson (hamstring) for roughly two months dropping earlier Monday evening, the Colts finally pulled the trigger on a one-year deal for the 34-year-old veteran. While Allen instantly becomes a fantasy-relevant player again, his fit in the offense is interesting. Even in his prime, Allen was never a field-stretching deep threat like Pierce, the receiver he’s replacing. That means he’ll be fighting for the same underneath targets that will also go to Tyler Warren and Josh Downs. There will be plenty of targets to go around for all three to pay off their draft cost in PPR formats, but the overall efficiency of the offense could suffer without a legitimate deep threat.