Falcons free safety Ricardo Allen has officially inked his restricted free agent tender, as Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com tweets. Allen was the last of this year’s tendered restricted free agents to sign his deal. 
“Coming from Pick [No.] 147 to being cut and spending a whole year on the practice squad, then next switching positions and playing something I’ve never played before to securing at least $3MM this year for my family,” Allen said. “I don’t think there is anyone around that doesn’t think I can/shouldn’t make more, but I’m grateful.”
Allen took a moderate gamble by waiting this long to sign his RFA tender, but the Falcons were unlikely to pull the $2.914MM deal given his past performance. In four seasons with the team, Allen has played in 46 games, including 45 starts. All in all, he has made six interceptions, ten deflected passes, one fumble recovery, and 158 tackles.
Allen played cornerback in college, but he has successfully transitioned to safety under head coach Dan Quinn. The two sides could hammer out a long-term deal between now and the start of the season, but it’s not immediately clear whether the team will engage him in talks.
Falcons GM Thomas Dimitroff said that left tackle Jake Matthews and defensive tackle Grady Jarrett are up next for new deals after the completion of Matt Ryan‘s mammoth extension. Wide receiver Julio Jones has also taken notice of Ryan’s new deal and is pushing for a new multi-year contract of his own.
Allen is eager to sign a multi-year deal with Atlanta, but he already has secured a nice pay bump by signing the one-year tender. Last season, he made just $615K in base pay as an exclusive rights free agent.