Dwayne Allen doing yoga to help prevent injuries

For as tough as the 2015 season was for Dwayne Allen, he's had a pretty nice offseason. He received a large contract extension from the Colts and, just as importantly, he received a vote of confidence from his franchise that he wasn't sure was there last year.

The Colts have committed to Allen as the guy at tight end for the foreseeable future, and they know that he can produce when healthy. But it's that last part that has proven to be the issue: when healthy. Facts are facts: Allen has missed at least three games in each of the past three seasons. Without Coby Fleener there to lessen the dropoff now, those games missed could stand out even more if they happen in 2016.

So naturally, Allen is spending this offseason trying to stay healthy. One such way, according to ESPN's Mike Wells, is by doing yoga twice a week, something he hopes will help with his flexibility.

“Want to keep up the flexibility,” Allen told Wells. “Doing some work, whether it’s yoga, Pilates, all things tied to flexibility. Making sure I continue to go through football drills and stay in football shape from a muscle-memory standpoint ... You can’t run or overprepare for injuries. It’s going to happen. It’s part of the game. You do small things that you hope are preventative measures.”

Allen is right in saying that you can't overprepare because injuries are going to happen regardless. It's football and it's a physical sport. Injuries are unpredictable, so there's only so much one can do to prevent them. But at the same time, players can work on staying as healthy as possible and preparing their bodies for the upcoming season, and that's what Allen is doing.

It's entirely possible that Dwayne Allen will get injured again in 2016. It's football, and injuries happen. But his main goal this offseason is doing everything he can to prevent those injuries from happening, and one such way he's doing that is through yoga. Hopefully for him and for the Colts, it works.