Keenan Allen says Carli Lloyd couldn’t hack it in the NFL

At least one NFL player thinks US women’s soccer star Carli Lloyd should stick to the pitch.

Los Angeles Chargers wideout Keenan Allen threw a big bucket of cold Gatorade on Lloyd’s chances to thrive in the league with a pointed tweet on Tuesday, saying the three-time World Cup champ would be a liability if one of her kicks didn’t get past the line of scrimmage.

“Sound sweet til somebody block the kick and all of a sudden she on defense,” Allen wrote. “Would be like the stampede scene in the lion king movie.”

But Allen, who posted his unsolicited take with a video of Lloyd smashing a 55-yard field goal at a Philadelphia Eagles practice last week, wasn’t entirely negative, adding: “She do got a boot tho!”

The post, which was retweeted more than 3,100 times as of early Wednesday, prompted a wide range of replies, including some that countered Lloyd would actually fit right in with her NFL counterparts if given a shot.

“Legitimate question … how is this different from any other kicker?” one NFL fan asked. “The same thing would happen to 99% of them.”

Another user who appeared to be a Chiefs fan even got personal with Allen, claiming Lloyd is actually “more physical” than the 27-year-old Pro Bowl receiver who caught 97 passes and six touchdowns last year.

Other replies blasted the oft-injured Allen as one of the NFL’s “softest players,” while some warned that critics shouldn’t underestimate Lloyd’s chances to make an impact in a regular-season game.

“That woman got legs and people might be surprised what she could do,” one fan said. “She may not have the upper body strength of NFL players but don’t rule out her planting her feet and shoulder down.”

Lloyd, a native of Delran, New Jersey, currently plays midfield for Sky Blue FC in the National Women’s Soccer League. She turned heads on Aug. 20 by splitting the uprights from 55 yards out during a joint practice between the Philadelphia Eagles and Baltimore Ravens.

Lloyd was in Philadelphia on Tuesday to throw the first pitch before the Phillies took on the Pirates. She’s set to rejoin the World Cup champion US women’s team on Thursday to take on Portugal at Lincoln Financial Field as part of a five-game victory tour.

But fans – as well as detractors like Allen — shouldn’t expect Lloyd to kick her way onto an NFL roster this year, as she’s eyeing the 2020 season if she decides to take the plunge, according to her trainer, James Galanis.

“If she’s going to do this, she’ll do it – she’ll train in the offseason, she’ll get herself ready so that she just doesn’t do it for the sake of doing it,” Galanis told ESPN. “If she’s going to do it, she’s going to do it so that she can be a success.”

Two teams have expressed serious interest in Lloyd, including one that offered her a chance to play Thursday in a final preseason matchup, Galanis said. He did not identify the teams.

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