Already a rare commodity due to the increase of 3-4 schemes, the 4-3 defensive end now has to deal with player rotation and specialization. It’s a mess. One player that’s had to endure that personally is Jared Allen. When the Chicago Bears shifted to a 3-4 this offseason, he was a man without a position, moving into an outside linebacker role, where he struggled to find success or playing time. Now, however, he’s in Carolina as a hand-in-the-dirt end once more.

Despite getting blanked last week, he looks ready for Week 7. In this first game back, he gets to pin his ears back against a Philadelphia Eagles’ defense that has wholly consumed Chip Kelly’s gospel of getting the ball out quickly on passing plays; they rank 26th in sack percentage allowed in the NFL, with a minuscule 3.4% of pass plays ending with Sam Bradford on the turf. That said, they are tied for eighth-highest stuff percentage allowed with 11.9% of their running plays stopped behind the line. Allen should get penetration on this offensive line and be able to make at least one big play.

Allen is available in 93.1% of ESPN IDP leagues, and we project him for around 2.5 tackles, a great chance for a sack, and a total score of 3.27 balanced fantasy points in Week 7.