Allen visits league office today

The Vikings defensive end could face a fine or suspension as a result of his hits on opposition quarterbacks earlier this month.

By CHIP SCOGGINS, Star Tribune

Last update: November 18, 2008 - 9:56 AM

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Jared Allen is scheduled to meet with NFL officials in New York today to discuss several of his recent hits on quarterbacks, but Vikings coach Brad Childress declined to speculate on whether he expects the defensive end to be available Sunday against Jacksonville.

"Any insight would have to come from the NFL," Childress said Monday.

Fox Sports, which first reported the visit, said Allen could face another fine or possible suspension as a result of two hits on Houston's Matt Schaub on Nov. 2 and a helmet-to-helmet hit on Green Bay's Aaron Rodgers on Nov. 9. The NFL fined Allen $50,000 for his two low hits on Schaub, two days before the hit on Rodgers, which drew a roughing-the- passer penalty.

It is unclear the exact purpose for the meeting and what steps the league might take in dealing with Allen, who declined comment after Sunday's 19-13 loss at Tampa Bay.

Allen's defensive linemates Kevin and Pat Williams are scheduled to visit the league office Thursday to appeal their four-game suspensions for violating the NFL's steroids policy after testing positive for a banned diuretic that can serve as masking agent.

Childress said he is not distracted by the possibility of losing three Pro Bowl defensive linemen to suspensions.

"I just think everything at this point would be speculation," he said. "So I try to stay in the now and get ready for Jacksonville and really don't go much further than that. That's the way our guys are, not getting out over their skis. I think you make a huge error when you do that. It's a negative energy drain, and I think it's just important to stay with the positive energy right now."

Allen also is dealing with a serious right shoulder injury. He left the locker room with his right arm in a sling Sunday and was in obvious pain after playing his second game since suffering a third-degree sprain of the AC joint in his shoulder against the Texans.

Childress met with Allen on Monday and said Allen "feels much, much better today."

"But for me to tell you he's going to be pain-free the rest of the year, he's not going to be pain-free until the football season ends," Childress said. "That's just the way it is. That's the way it is with a number of guys on our football team.

"We're not the Lone Ranger. We're beat up right now physically as a football team. But I could say that about probably 31 other teams right now."

Childress said Allen will spend another week getting intensive treatment. He used the term "game ready" to describe the process and said it's not unusual for players to receive as many as 10 treatments per day on injured body parts, especially for knees and shoulders.

"You can get better, you can feel better," Childress said. "You can take some swelling out of there and get yourself some relief. It's not immediate. You have to work at it. Most all of our guys work at it because this is their profession, and they work at getting well as hard as they work to take care of their bodies and stay healthy."

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