Patriots' James Robinson: Competing for role behind Stevenson
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Robinson, who believes he's fully past the Achilles injury that he sustained at the end of the 2021 season, is slated to have a chance to compete for the Patriots' No. 2 RB role behind starter Rhamondre Stevenson, Chad Graff of The Athletic reports.
Robinson, who turns 25 in August, rushed for 1,070 yards in 2020 after signing with the Jaguars as an undrafted free agent. However, since then Jacksonville's first-round selection of Travis Etienne in 2021, coupled with injuries Robinson has dealt with, have thwarted his momentum as a pro, and the Illinois State product now is looking to reboot his career with New England (with whom he signed a two-year deal with modest guarantees in March) after seeing limited action down the stretch last season following his October trade to the Jets. With the Patriots, Robinson has a chance to help fill the void created by the offseason departure of Damien Harris, and if he's healthy enough to run with the pace he did as a rookie, the 5-foot-9, 219-pounder's ability as a pass catcher (he caught 49 passes in 2020) could allow Robinson to carve out a key complementary role behind Stevenson in a backfield that also includes Ty Montgomery and 2022 draftees Pierre Strong and Kevin Harris.
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Patriots' James Robinson: Gets two-year deal with New England
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Robinson agreed to a two-year contract with the Patriots on Wednesday, Jeff Howe of The Athletic reports.
Robinson's deal can be worth up to $8 million with incentives. After bursting onto the scene with 1,847 rushing yards and 15 touchdowns across his first two professional seasons with Jacksonville, Robinson struggled during an injury riddled 2022 campaign, mustering just 425 yards and three touchdowns on the ground in 11 appearances between the Jaguars and Jets. He tore his Achilles late in the 2021 season and battled a knee injury in 2022, but the Patriots are hoping that Robinson will regain his pre-injury form while contributing to a backfield led by Rhamondre Stevenson.
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James Robinson: Won't receive contract tender
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The Jets are not on line to extend a contract tender to Robinson, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com reports.
After coming over from Jacksonville in an October trade, Robinson didn't make much of an impact with his new team, finishing the 2022 season with 110 carries for 425 yards and three touchdowns while adding 11 catches for 51 yards and a pair of receiving scores in 11 games split between the Jaguars and Jets. Now that he's further removed from an Achilles injury that he sustained in Week 16 of the 2021 season, the 24-year-old looming free agent will now have an opportunity to bolster another team's backfield.
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Jets' James Robinson: Non-factor after trade to NY
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Robinson finished the 2022 season with 110 carries for 425 yards and three touchdowns in 11 games split between the Jaguars and Jets. He added 11 catches for 51 yards and two touchdowns on 14 targets.
Robinson got off to a strong start in Jacksonville with four scrimmage touchdowns through three games, but he struggled the rest of the season while battling a sore knee and was consistently inactive due to coach's decisions down the stretch with the Jets. The 24-year-old running back will be a restricted free agent this offseason, but New York may not have much interest in retaining his services given his poor play after being acquired in a midseason trade. Robinson had 22 scrimmage touchdowns in his first 31 NFL games prior to the drastic downturn, so some team likely will take a chance on him in 2023, even if the Jets don't.
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Jets' James Robinson: Inactive Sunday
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Robinson (coach's decision) is inactive for Sunday's game against the Seahawks.
Robinson continues to be the odd man out in the Jets' backfield, with Zonovan Knight and Michael Carter on track to lead the team's rushing attack Sunday, while Ty Johnson is on hand in a reserve capacity.
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Jets' James Robinson: Inactive Thursday night
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Robinson is inactive for Thursday's game against the Jets.
Robinson continues to be the odd man out, with Zonovan Knight and Michael Carter on track to lead the Jets' Week 16 backfield, while Ty Johnson is available in a reserve capacity.
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Jets' James Robinson: Inactive Sunday
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Robinson (coach's decision) is inactive for Sunday's game against the Lions.
Robinson remains the odd man out in the Jets' backfield Sunday, with Zonovan Knight and Michael Carter set to lead the Jets' Week 15 backfield, while Ty Johnson is on hand in reserve.
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Jets' James Robinson: Inactive Sunday
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Robinson (coach's decision) is inactive for Sunday's game against the Bills, Rich Cimini of ESPN.com reports.
Robinson is the odd man out Sunday, with Michael Carter back in the mix after a one-game absence. Also in line to see work in the Jets' Week 14 backfield will be Zonovan Knight and Ty Johnson.
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Jets' James Robinson: Four carries in Week 13
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Robinson rushed four times for 10 yards and wasn't targeted in Sunday's 27-22 loss to Minnesota.
Michael Carter's absence due to an ankle injury paved the way for Robinson to suit up after he was a healthy scratch for the Jets' previous game, but the former Jacksonville running back still saw minimal usage. Zonovan Knight rushed 15 times for 90 yards in the lead role, demonstrating the type of tough running the Jets have been hoping for but have yet to see out of Robinson. Even if Carter remains out in Week 14 against the Bills, Robinson's usage will likely remain minimal.
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Jets' James Robinson: Part of Week 13 committee
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Jets head coach Robert Saleh said Robinson is expected to be part of a three-man backfield committee Sunday against the Vikings that also includes Zonovan Knight and Ty Johnson, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports.
The Jets made Robinson a surprise healthy inactive ahead of last week's game against the Bears, with Michael Carter, Knight and Johnson serving as the team's backfield options in the 31-10 win. Carter suffered a low-ankle sprain in the second half of that contest and is listed as doubtful for Sunday's game, and with the Jets already proceeding as though Carter will be out, Robinson will re-enter the mix as at least a No. 3 option. Because Knight (17 touches for 103 yards) and Johnson (six for 78) were efficient with their opportunities last week, it's reasonable to expect both to be ahead of Robinson in the pecking order for snaps in Week 13, even though Robinson has more experience as a lead back in the NFL.
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Jets' James Robinson: Role uncertain moving forward
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Coach Robert Saleh said Wednesday that "no one has seen the last of" Robinson, though Saleh wouldn't commit to Robinson playing Sunday against the Vikings after the running back was scratched in the Week 12 win over the Bears, Rich Cimini of ESPN.com reports.
Undrafted rookie Zonovan Knight made his NFL debut with Robinson out of the picture last week, and Knight made the most of the opportunity with 103 scrimmage yards. The Jets may not have the option to use the same trio of Knight, Ty Johnson and Michael Carter from that 31-10 win over the Bears, as Carter's status against Minnesota is in doubt due to an ankle injury. If Carter sits out, Robinson would presumably re-enter the rotation. Robinson was surprised at the decision to scratch him, which likely resulted from his ineffectiveness since being acquired from Jacksonville via trade. As a member of the Jets, Robinson has averaged a modest 3.0 yards per carry while catching only two passes in three games played.
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Jets' James Robinson: Healthy scratch against Bears
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Robinson is listed as inactive Week 12 against the Bears.
Robinson was brought in as a mid-season acquisition following Breece Hall's season-ending knee injury, but he has yet to make much of an impact on the Jets offense. He'll now end up a healthy scratch, with Michael Carter set to lead the backfield and Ty Johnson set to serve as the primary backup. Rookie running back Zonovan Knight is also active for the contest.
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Jets' James Robinson: Limited impact since trade to NY
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Robinson rushed seven times for 10 yards and wasn't targeted in Sunday's 10-3 loss to New England.
New York badly missed the big play ability of Breece Hall, who's out for the season due to a torn ACL. Robinson's power inside and Michael Carter's speed can trouble weaker defenses, such as the Chicago unit the Jets will face in Week 12, but Hall brought both elements prior to getting hurt. Since being brought in via trade from Jacksonville, Robinson has rushed for 75 yards on 25 attempts for the Jets, averaging exactly three yards per carry. Carter has 121 yards and a touchdown on 27 attempts (4.5 YPC) over the same span after totaling 19 yards on eight carries in this one.
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Jets' James Robinson: RBs to Sit
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I don't love Robinson or Michael Carter in this matchup with the Patriots, but Carter has more appeal as a flex option given his role in the passing game. We saw how this played out two games ago when these team's met in Week 8. Carter had seven carries for 26 yards and four catches for 35 yards on seven targets. Robinson had five carries for 17 yards and no catches on one target. The Patriots have allowed two running backs to score against them this season, and it was David Montgomery and Khalil Herbert in the same game for the Bears. I don't expect Robinson or Carter to have a standout performance this week.
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Jets' James Robinson: Scores go-ahead TD against Bills
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Robinson (knee) rushed 13 times for 48 yards while catching both of his targets for five yards and a touchdown in Sunday's 20-17 win over the Bills.
Robinson didn't find much running room in the first half, but holes started opening up after halftime. He scored on a screen pass from seven yards out to give the Jets a 17-14 lead, and Robinson ripped off consecutive runs of nine, seven and 16 yards to begin a 13-play, 86-yard drive that chewed up 6:10 of the clock and all three of Buffalo's timeouts before culminating in a go-ahead, 28-yard field goal. Michael Carter was more effective on the ground with 12 carries for 76 yards and a touchdown. Robinson's power and Carter's speed are both necessary elements in New York's run-first offense, so both running backs should remain heavily involved after the Week 10 bye.
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Jets' James Robinson: Active against Buffalo
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Robinson (knee) is active Week 9 against the Bills.
Robinson was a late addition to this week's injury report and at one point considered a true game-time call, but reports from Sunday morning indicated the team had optimism its newly-acquired running back would make it on the gameday roster. That will be confirmed with the official inactives report, which clears Robinson to contribute as much as his health will allow. He'll still be serving behind presumed starter Michael Carter, and it's also worth noting the Bills are one of the toughest defenses against opposing running backs this season. Buffalo has only allowed one touchdown to opposing backs all year and is giving up the third-fewest fantasy points per game to RBs in standard scoring formats.
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Jets' James Robinson: Likely to play Sunday
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Robinson (knee) is in line to play Sunday against the Bills, Mike Garafolo of NFL Network reports.
Prior to his trade from the Jaguars to the Jets on Oct. 24, Robinson was dealing with a sore knee, according to his old coach Doug Pederson. But Robinson avoided Week 8 practice reports with his new team and suited up last Sunday versus the Patriots, turning a 21 percent snap share into five carries for 17 yards. He did the same during Week 9 prep until the Jets added him to the report Saturday as questionable due to a knee injury. Assuming he's active Sunday, as expected, Robinson seems destined to play second fiddle to Michael Carter out of the backfield, with Ty Johnson also on hand for lingering RB reps.
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Jets' James Robinson: Game-time decision, team optimistic
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Robinson (knee) is considered a game-time decision for Sunday's game against the Bills, but the Jets are optimistic about his chances of suiting up, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.
Robinson is officially listed as questionable after having been added to New York's injury report late this week with a knee issue. After handling just five carries in his Jets debut last week, Robinson's status for Sunday may not be disclosed until the team's injury report is released approximately 90 minutes prior to the 1 p.m. ET kickoff. Ty Johnson and Zonovan Knight would stand to handle increased opportunities behind Michael Carter if Robinson isn't able to go.
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Jets' James Robinson: Added to injury report
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Robinson (knee) was added to Saturday's injury report and is listed as questionable for Sunday's contest against the Bills, Zack Rosenblatt of The Athletic reports.
Robinson saw just five carries in his Jets debut last week, but that could easily be attributed to a surprisingly pass-heavy
game script. A combination of Ty Johnson and Zonovan Knight likely would take over the between-the-tackle carries with Michael Carter operating the larger share of the backfield committee if the former Jaguars running back were to be sidelined. Expect more information on Robinson's status ahead of Sunday's 1:00 p.m. ET kickoff.
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Jets' James Robinson: Used sparingly in Jets debut
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Robinson rushed five times for 17 yards and didn't catch his only target in Sunday's 22-17 loss to the Patriots.
Robinson didn't make much of an impact in his first game with the Jets, as New York went to a more pass-heavy game plan after losing running back Breece Hall to a season-ending ACL tear. As Robinson familiarizes himself with the offense, the trade acquisition from Jacksonville is likely to take on a larger role with his new team, but another negative game script could lead to limited rushing attempts in Week 9 against the Bills.
