It was always about the challenge for Eric Allen. He wanted to line up, one-on-one against the very best receiver on the other team. He wanted to be on the island, where the spotlight shined, for better or worse.

In a career that has landed him, after so many years playing on the island and then waiting for his name to be called, in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio, Allen rarely had worse.

A second-round draft pick in 1988 of the Eagles and then-head coach Buddy Ryan, Allen was never the most ballyhooed member of the Gang Green defense, but there was nobody – not Reggie White, not Jerome Brown, not Seth Joyner – who was more respected for the way he prepared for the game.

For the way he prepared to be great.

And Allen was great. He played 14 seasons in the NFL, the first seven of them in Philadelphia where he made the Pro Bowl six times and was once (1989) named a first-team All-Pro player, and Allen was known for the many interceptions (34 of his 54 came during his time with the Eagles) and big plays with the ball in his hands after the interceptions (5 of his 8 interception returns for touchdowns happened with the Eagles), but Allen was far, far more than that.

"I wanted to be remembered as an all-around player, someone who worked hard, dedicated myself to the game and my teammates, and prepared to do whatever it took to win football games," Allen said. "Going against the greatest receivers in the game was fun. I loved all of it.

"This whole thing has been awesome. I'm having a great time out here (in Canton) and I'm thankful for everything that has happened in my career, the support I've been given from my family, from my coaches, the fans, the organizations that I've played with. To have this journey, it's just like football: You do your part and you surround yourself with great people and you all help each other."

With a large handful of former Eagles teammates around him (among those slated to be with Allen are Joyner, William Thomas, and Clyde Simmons), Allen will deliver a speech that he has worked on for more than six months, ever since the day the knock came to his door just a couple of days before the Eagles defeated Kansas City to win Super Bowl LIX informing him of his ascension to Pro Football Hall of Fame greatness.

This is the ultimate individual honor for Allen, but it has never been about singular accomplishments for him. He was here in those formative Eagles years as Ryan resurrected a moribund franchise with his trademark swagger, building a team around a swashbuckling defense wearing its black shoes and tearing the heart from high-scoring offenses.

"Always fun to be in that locker room and with that team because there were so many great players and dynamic personalities," Allen said. "We went after offenses. We dared them to beat us and, hey, sometimes they did. But we never backed down. We were going to punch you in the mouth and I think that's a reason a lot of Eagles fans loved us. We were a tough team in a tough city."

The true mark of Allen's greatness was the length of his career – one that lined up against Joe Montana in the early days and Tom Brady in the last year, one that saw action in the Fog Bowl of 1988 and the "Tuck Rule Game" in the 2001 playoffs between the New England Patriots and Oakland Raiders – and the production throughout his playing time (he had five interceptions as a rookie and picked off five passes with three returns for touchdowns in his 13th season).

Allen walked in from Arizona State in 1988 and started from Day 1, and not until Quinyon Mitchell did it in the 2024 season has a cornerback done that for the Eagles.

"It wasn't just me. So many great players and teammates. Great coaches who believed in me. A family that supported me," he said. "I have all of those people to thank. Thank you to the fans. Thank you to everyone who loves the game of football. I've truly been blessed and I've loved it all and I'm still loving it."