‘I didn’t dream that far’: behind Nick Allegretti’s indelible moment for the KC Chiefs
We know the season is on the line on Sunday when the Chiefs play host to the Buffalo Bills in what should be a riveting game. And we’ll get back to that shortly.
But we can’t help but pause here first for further appreciation of Chiefs’ offensive lineman Nick Allegretti’s excellent adventure last Sunday ... not to mention the testament to attitude that his moment stood for.
When Chiefs’ tight end Travis Kelce threw a touchdown pass during the Chiefs’ 42-21 skunking of Pittsburgh in that AFC Wild Card Round game at Arrowhead Stadium, it was the culmination of a dream of tossing an NFL touchdown that he’d been telling his mom about since he was 5 years old.
At least that’s what he said when his mother, Donna, was given the opportunity to ask him a question at the start of the 32-year-old Kelce’s postgame Zoom session with the media.
And you might think Allegretti felt much the same sensation when he achieved what is commonly understood to be the O-lineman’s holy grail of catching a touchdown pass … as he did against the Steelers.
But it wasn’t quite that for the 6-foot-4, 320-pound Allegretti.
Or maybe it’s most accurate to say it was something more than that.
Because as Allegretti was recounting the aftermath on Wednesday, he mentioned the flood of text messages he’d received about this being a dream come true.
Then he said, no, it hadn’t been a dream at all. Not because he wouldn’t have wanted it, of course, but because he had never ever imagined it.
Or as he put it on Wednesday during his first full media availability since: “I didn’t dream that far.”
Shazam, though, after he reported as an eligible receiver and tossed aside presumptive AFC defensive player of the year T.J. Watt to drift out into the pattern and become Patrick Mahomes’ fourth option, he caught the ball and pivoted in for a 1-yard touchdown.
For a microsecond, he was less conscious of the TD he scored than the more basic fact itself.
“‘Holy Cow,’” he thought, “‘I can’t believe I caught a ball.’”
But he promptly became cognizant of where he had caught and taken the ball as he was overcome with what he called “pure joy and excitement” and swarmed by teammates and linemates in particular … whose faces radiated excitement for him.
“There wasn’t a whole lot of thought,” he said, put into what came next: With Allegretti apparently still screaming from what we can see on video, he let loose as beautifully emphatic an old-school spike of the football as you’ll ever see. And the feeling was still with him as he left the field: You can bet he’ll never forget hearing “my ma and my wife and my pops screaming my name” and getting to hug them by the tunnel before he went into the locker room.
Pretty cool, he called it. But there are other reasons this is just that. Allegretti is an ever-pleasant and engaging guy, and it’s sure been a different sort of season for him after playing much more in 2020 … including 206 offensive snaps last postseason.
The extreme makeover of the offensive line last offseason returned him to a reserve role, one that meant he played only 22 offensive snaps the entire regular season other than the 55 he played at Cincinnati because of injuries.
So he’s just doing whatever he can for the team at this point, he said, and always staying ready for whatever might come. He’d contribute in any way he could. That’s what great teammates do, after all.
It’s just that no one would have guessed that would mean scoring a touchdown on one of the two offensive snaps he played against the Steelers.
So forgive him for not acting like he’d been there before after he scored, especially on a team of players who tend to celebrate in a way that honors coach Andy Reid mantra of letting your personality show.
Also because … he hadn’t been there before. Ever.
“Uh, no, absolutely not,” he said, smiling. “One catch in, like, an eighth-grade end of the year celebration game, and that was it.”
It’s funny how things play out, though: Allegretti also had a catch in practice last week when the Chiefs were rehearsing the play.
As it happened, that also unfolded with all the other receivers covered. Knowing he would be there but “not thinking that we’re ever going to throw it to him,” Mahomes said, smiling, he threw it as the last resort in practice. When it worked, that likely gave Mahomes all the more trust in Allegretti when it came open in the game.
That wasn’t the only time Mahomes had connected with Allegretti before, though. To begin each Friday practice, the Chiefs add linemen to their daily warmup routine between quarterback and receivers.
“Pat and Go,” they call it, though Allegretti called it our “fat and slow period.” It’s meant to lighten things up, but Reid often takes a glance and figures, “If you’ve got a little bit of skill, we’ll try to work with you.”
At least to hear Allegretti tell it, albeit playfully, he’s got plenty to work with. Asked which lineman has the best hands, he smiled and said, “I’ve got to go with myself” just as a matter of building his own confidence.
As for the worst? That would be Orlando Brown and Trey Williams.
“Definitely carrying around a pair of bricks,” he said, laughing. “They’re effective for other things, though, so we’re lucky there.”
While it’s nice to have the ball signed by Mahomes (after Jerick McKinnon ran it down) that Allegretti figures will be a “pretty cool piece of memorabilia,” it’s evident that Allegretti’s embrace of this is greatly enhanced by the camaraderie with his teammates … and linemen in general.
For all the congratulations he’s received, he said he felt “shock and awe” from the outpouring of the offensive line … community (?). From his high school days in Illinois to his time at the University of Illinois to current and former Chiefs teammates, he said, “We kind of all celebrate this one together.”
Among the celebrants are former Chiefs lineman Joe Valerio, who had four receiving touchdowns during his career (matched by only two other linemen in NFL history) and like Allegretti wore No. 73.
“Just a couple of Italian #73 O-Linemen doing their thing!” Valerio wrote in a Twitter post on Sunday featuring pictures of each celebrating touchdowns. He added, “Way to go Nick! Keeping the tradition alive!”
Responded Allegretti: “We do what we can!”
Even if it was something he never would have imagined.
This story was originally published January 20, 2022 at 5:00 AM with the headline "‘I didn’t dream that far’: behind Nick Allegretti’s indelible moment for the KC Chiefs."