Will Brian Robinson Jr. start for the Commanders on Thursday just 2 months after being shot?
Whether or not you’re a fan of the sport, the team or the player, the Commanders RB has just returned to field following an ordeal that would shake even the best of us. That’s worth respect.
Not only did he manage to recover in an incredibly short space of time and return to the field, but the Commanders rookie is now set become a starter less than two month after being shot.
Commanders’ Brian Robinson Jr. is now the starting running back
Less than two months ago, Commanders rookie Brian Robinson Jr. was the victim of an attempted robbery and horrifically, was shot during the ordeal. Since that time, the third-round draft pick has made steady progress on his road to recovery and that of course, culminated in him making his NFL debut this past Sunday against the Titans. Now, the story is set to get even better as reports indicate that Robinson will now be taking over the starting spot for Washington as the lead running back on Thursday night. Consider for a moment, that just over six weeks ago, Robinson was hospitalized with multiple gunshot wounds.
In truth, this is more or less what was expected of the former Alabama product. Against the Titans, he was present for 18 snaps and of those, he had nine carries among which were two first downs. Robinson was of course rotated with Antonio Gibson and J.D. McKissic, however, even before his terrible ordeal, all signs have pointed to the notion that the Commanders favored him as starter. Indeed, one could argue that were it not for the carjacking that left him hospitalize, he quite likely would have opened the season for the Commanders.
The Commanders have choices at RB so how do they manage them?
As mentioned above, Robinson was rotated on Sunday with Washington’s two other running backs. Gibson for his part had only three carries and was in fact out-snapped by McKissic. The latter has generally always been a third-down back, so it will be interesting to see how the Commanders utilize him. Will they use him as a pass-catching option this Thursday and beyond? Also, how will Robinson preform with his new found status, while simultaneously integrating into a rotation system? For the moment, while these are valid questions, it would appear the Commanders - with good reason - are just happy to have their man back after all that happened to him.
“This is a young man that when I was talking to him in the trauma room, he was really despondent, but as he’s gotten (back to the field), you’ve seen his spirit just come back to life every day, every day, every day,” Commanders coach Ron Rivera said of Robinson’s path to return. “That’s a really cool thing, it really is. To me, it’s all based on his spirit, who he is as a young man.”