Jonathan Allen, a decade-long staple in the upper echelon of NFL interior defense, is old enough to have been recruited by Bengals defensive line coach Jerry Montgomery at Oklahoma and to model himself after one of his early peers in great Bengals defensive tackle Geno Atkins.

Yet he's young enough to have played in Paycor Stadium against this swashbuckling Bengals offense and come away impressed with the talent of Joe Burrow and company, as well as the electricity of a packed prime-time Paycor after Allen's Commanders outlasted Burrow's Bengals in a 38-33 shootout during an early 2024 game.

"I was telling my wife that environment was insane. Monday night," said Allen, looking at Hannah sitting at his introductory news conference Friday holding their 17-month-old daughter Eleanor.

"And, it's funny, because after we got back to Washington, we kind of copied some of the things that you guys were doing here. Turning off the lights and everyone having their flashlight out, and just little things like that. So I'm looking forward to this environment for sure."

The Bengals are looking forward to Allen's blend of experience and production to be exactly what they need on a defense craving leadership and interior pressure on the quarterback.

"When you evaluate the film, there hasn't been much drop-off in his game," said Montgomery, who lost Allen to Alabama all those years ago. "He shows he can still do the things he's done in the past."

Allen, 31, did what he always does when he's healthy last year in Minnesota. He played at least 722 snaps (the number was 811) and didn't miss a game in getting 3.5 sacks and 11 hits on the quarterback.

The year before that in Washington, he injured his pectoral muscle in the Commanders' sixth game, and when he underwent surgery, he thought his season was done. When he woke up, they told him he could be back for the playoffs, where he was able to help Washington to the NFC title game in his second postseason experience.

"It was unreal. It was unreal. I mean, there's nothing like it. Playing playoff football is unreal," Allen said. "Cincinnati is not too far removed from the Super Bowl. With a guy like Joe Burrow in that offense and the things we're going to be able to do on defense, it's going to be an exciting year, and looking forward to what we can do."

He's tough, durable and his 11 quarterback hits last year would have led the Bengals' interior, and his 3.5 sacks would have been second to B.J. Hill’s four. When Allen was cut from the Vikings on Wednesday, the Bengals didn't hesitate in dealing with him Thursday in order to continue their defensive facelift that already had Chiefs safety Bryan Cook and Seahawks edge Boye Mafe.

On his end, the Bengals had everything Allen sought.

"It was where I thought I was going to be the most happy." Allen said. "It was always winning. But for me, I want to go somewhere that we have a chance to compete, and where I feel like I can showcase my talents and help the team at the same time. And this is one of the few places where I felt like I could have my cake and eat it too.

"When you have a guy like Burrow, you always have a chance. You're never out of it. With the coaches we have here and the players that they already have in, and they've been bringing in, I just felt like this was the perfect fit for me and my family."

Montgomery loves how Allen can play all three downs, but he says he'll keep his age in mind when he manages the snaps, and Allen can get on board with that.

Allen played the seventh-most snaps of any defensive lineman last season and only Cam Heyward and Leonard Williams were older.

"The tough part is there's always a fine balance of not playing too much, but also getting enough. I've always struggled with that, because obviously I want to play as much as I can," Allen said. "So that's something that we definitely talked about, finding that perfect balance between 65% to 75%, whatever the percentage may be. But I definitely think that's important to being able to stay fresh for that throughout the course of the season."

Allen is excited to finally play for Montgomery after getting recruited by him and then playing for him in a Pro Bowl the year the Packers coached it when it was still a game. It's mutual.

"You're talking about one of the top defensive lineman in the league over a 10-year span," Montgomery said. "Even though he was in a system that didn't quite fit who he is right now, he still had numbers. He can still play the run, but, more importantly, he can affect the quarterback as a three technique."

Even though Atkins retired after the 2020 season as the defensive tackle with the most sacks in the 2010s, the 6-3, 300-pound Allen is still a big admirer of his game and focuses on Atkins' impeccable technique rather than the incomparable quickness.

"The thing that jumps off (the tape) immediately is his explosiveness. Just his ability to completely take over games from the inside. In the run game, in the pass game," Allen said. "He's definitely a guy that I've not only just tried to model my game after, but look at his tape as something that's repeatable.

"He did it without being 6-5, 350 … Definitely one of my favorite guys to watch … I think the speed is what wows the fans. But when you really break down his film, he was such a technical run stopper and pass rusher."

The Bengals are counting on Allen bringing both off the tape.