Brian Robinson Jr. Reminds RB Coach of Alfred Morris and Adrian Peterson

Brian Robinson Jr. reminds RB coach of Morris, Peterson originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington

Following in the footsteps of two of the best Washington running backs in recent memory isn’t a bad way to go for a rookie out of Alabama.

Brian Robinson Jr. is set to be an integral member of the Commanders’ RB room this season along with Antonio Gibson, J.D. McKissic and Jaret Patterson. Robinson, unlike his position mates, is a big and barreling body who can truck through defenders, rather than solely juking around them.

Washington running backs coach Randy Jordan spoke on the contributions Robinson could make this season during OTAs. He evoked a couple of names that Commanders fans are sure to be familiar with.

“It was a run where we didn’t get up on the second level and he was able to kind of bait [the defense] with his eyes and his body, knowing that the lineman hadn’t come off yet,” Jordan said. “And the backer went one way and he replaced the backer. I said, ‘Dog, you can’t coach that.’

"Like, the only other guys I’ve kinda seen that were Alfred Morris and Adrian Peterson. Those two guys.”

Robinson imitating two of his D.C. predecessors, intentionally or otherwise, is a good omen for the 23-year-old. Morris was Washington’s lead rusher from 2012-15 while Peterson, even at age 33, led the squad in rushing yards in 2018 and 2019.

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Morris was tinier than Robinson and used a stealthy combination of quickness, agility and strength to evade tacklers during his time in Burgundy & Gold. It’s easy to see why Jordan sees the connection between Robinson and Peterson, though.

Both backs are around 6-foot-2 and 220 pounds. They both have shown the ability to cut on a dime and plow through defensive lines when need be. It’s a lot to live up to, but Robinson’s comparison to the future Hall-of-Famer in Peterson is high praise.

Jordan got more specific when discussing what specifically Robinson does that can make him such an effective weapon in the Commanders’ backfield.

“He’s nifty now. He’s sneaky nifty,” Jordan said. “The thing is he’s 6’2” and his ability to move backward—like there’s a couple runs he had in there and I said, ‘Hey man, that’s scary good, like that’s graduate work. That’s like tour level.’”

Robinson’s niftiness was part of the reason why he was able to rise through the ranks and become the RB1 at the best college program in the country: Alabama. Robinson impressed coaches early on, but had to wait until his predecessors Najee Harris and Josh Jacobs got their 15 minutes of fame before punching his own ticket.

Once he got the starting job, Robinson never looked back. He broke the Crimson Tide record when he became the first back in school history to rush for 200+ yards in a bowl game, which he did in the college football playoff vs. Cincinnati this past season.

Washington liked the pick immediately when they snagged Robinson in the third round this past April. He hasn’t played a down of NFL football yet, but if his Alabama tape and initial impressions in Ashburn are any indication, his coach says, the Commanders could be in for a treat.

“Just him being a natural running back, ‘cause that’s all he’s played, so he understands where his limits are,” Jordan said. “Every run, he kinda knows where everybody is supposed to fit.”

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