Oakland Raiders

Dennis Allen was formally introduced as Head Coach of The Oakland Raiders on Monday, January 30, 2012.

Allen became the 18th head coach in the 52-year history of the Oakland Raiders.

Allen came to the Raiders with 16 years of coaching experience at the college and professional football levels, including 10 as an NFL assistant. He was on the coaching staff of teams that captured the division title four times: Denver, 2011; New Orleans, 2009, 2006; Atlanta, 2004 and qualified for the postseason in two other seasons: 2010 and 2002.

Allen originally entered the NFL coaching ranks with Atlanta in 2002, spending four seasons with the Falcons as a defensive assistant.

llen kicked off his football coaching career in 1996 as a graduate assistant at his alma mater, Texas A&M, where he was a four-year letterman as a safety. He worked with Aggie defensive backs for four seasons before coaching the secondary at the University of Tulsa from 2000-01.

Allen was a highly-recruited defensive back at L. D. Bell High School in Hurst, Texas before following his father, Grady Allen, to Texas A&M. Allen went on to start the final 21 games of his career on the top-rated Texas A&M "Wrecking Crew" defense.

The Atlanta native was signed by Buffalo as an undrafted college free agent in 1996 and spent training camp with the Bills. His father played in the NFL as a linebacker for the Atlanta Falcons from 1968-72.