Allen is signing with the Indianapolis Colts on a one-year, $8.32 million max deal to play his 14th NFL season, ESPN reported late Monday night.
One of the greatest Chargers in the team's history, Allen, 34, has played 12 of his 13 seasons for the Bolts, having rejoined the franchise in 2025 after spending one year with the Chicago Bears.
Now, the six-time Pro Bowler will look to bolster the receiving ranks of the Colts, who are currently without game breaker Alec Pierce, who continues to recover from ankle surgery in the spring. Allen's signing is sure to increase consternation regarding the seriousness of Pierce's injury, but the veteran's addition could also be viewed as somewhat of a filling of the void left by trading away vet Michael Pittman.
With or without Pierce, the Colts' WR room isn't all that deep, also featuring starter Josh Downs, Ashton Dulin and Nick Westbrook-Ikhine.
Allen, a 2013 third-round pick of the Bolts, should also be familiar with the Colts offense, which is helmed by head coach Shane Steichen, who was with the Chargers from 2014 through 2020, including as the team's offensive coordinator in 2020 and the interim OC in 2019. Allen went to five straight Pro Bowls from 2017-2021.
The Chargers' all-time leading receiver, Allen has played in 171 games with 1,055 receptions, 12,051 yards and 70 touchdowns. He had 81 grabs for 777 yards and four touchdowns last year with Los Angeles.