Latest NFL Jaguar News: Former Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Russell Allen will retire after suffering a concussion and a stroke in a game last December. According to NFL, the undrafted linebacker will never play football again after he suffered an on-field stroke in Jacksonville's loss the Buffalo Bills last December. Doctors have discovered that a dime-sized portion of Allen's cerebellum, part of the brain that tells the body how to run and walk, has gone dark.
According to New York Post, the Jaguars released Allen last week after his personal physician consulted with Jacksonville's medical staff before a scheduled physical.
Months after Allen's initial stroke diagnosis, he went to three neurosurgeons. The last one advised Allen to quit playing football.
Allen told MMQB he has struggled to pick up and grip hand-held objects - doctors believe this will subside in time - and will be on blood-thinning medication for the rest of his life.
Allen hopes others will learn from his experience.
"Guys talk about it all the time: 'I'm all right; I just got my bell rung. I've had, maybe 10 times in my career, when for a second I felt woozy after a hit. And what I've learned from this is that it's not something to be overlooked. If it feels like something's wrong, something's wrong. I want someone to know my experience, so they can know when they experience something similar," he said.
Allen told MMQB's Robert Klemko that he was injured in a face-to-face crash with Buffalo Bills center Eric Wood, but continued to play through it.
"It was strange because it was so routine," Allen said. "We hit, I got off the block, no big deal. I felt something flash -- like they say when you get your bell rung. I didn't lose consciousness. I walked back to the huddle and finished the drive."
Allen stayed on the field, fighting in double vision until the final whistle. The Jaguars, later that week, shut him down after medical tests revealed the truth, marking the end of a promising young career that saw Allen start 29 games over the past two seasons.
