If there's one thing Brian Robinson Jr. has been adamant about over the course of his young career, it's that he's more than just a power back.
Yes, Robinson has a reputation of being able to bowl through defenders with ease. He's shown plenty of that over the years, whether it's pushing across the goal line for a touchdown against the Philadelphia Eagles or carrying multiple Atlanta Falcons players on his way to picking up a first down.
But Robinson also wants to show that he can be just as potent as a pass-catcher. We've seen some of that, too, like when he had six receptions for 119 yards and a touchdown against the Seattle Seahawks last year, but moments like that have been more infrequent.
With Washington using a new scheme led by a new offensive coordinator, Robinson is hopeful he can finally be an all-around weapon.
"I feel like this offense is very versatile," Robinson said. "We can do many, many different things. We have several different weapons that can do several different things. We have a versatile minded offensive coordinator [Kliff Kingsbury], he's creative."
Versatility has been one of the biggest points of emphasis for Quinn and his coaching staff through the first full week of practice. Some players have stuck to one spot, but most have been moved all over the field to find where they can best help the Commanders win games. All skill players have spent time working with the first and second group to make sure the quarterbacks work with as many combinations as possible.
Robinson's usage as a pass-catcher nearly quadrupled from 2022 to 2022, going from 12 targets to 43. If Robinson was hoping for even more opportunities, he should be in luck. He has been lined up in the slot as well as out wide and been a favorite target for Jayden Daniels. On the first day of practice, Daniels and Robinson connected on a touchdown in the corner on the end zone during red zone drills.
History also indicates that running backs tend to be used often in the passing game with Kliff Kingsbury as an offensive coordinator. From 2019-22, a running back ranked in the top five in targets for the Arizona Cardinals.
"I feel like I'll just continue to be able to elevate my passing game," Robinson said. "I had an opportunity to show that this is still one of my strong suits, and with Kliff coming in, I have even a bigger opportunity to catch the ball more and show more of what I can do in the passing game."
One could assume that most of the passing reps will go to Austin Ekeler, who has 30 receiving touchdowns in his career and a larger sample size of being used as a receiver, but Robinson said their skill sets are more similar than one would think. He admitted that Ekeler is twitchier, and he is more physical; that doesn't mean either of them will be pigeonholed into a specific role, though.
The Commanders were back on the field for the sixth practice of training camp before taking the day off on Wednesday. Check out the top photos from Tuesday morning.
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"He's a versatile pass catcher out of the back field, I can do the same thing as well," Robinson said. "So, I'm not going to say we can have two completely similar games. We can kind of do all of the same things."
If that does end up being the case, having two backs with similar skill sets should help open up Washington's playbook and provide Daniels with more help as he learns to be an NFL quarterback.
Robinson wants Daniels, and the team, to know that he can be counted on.
"I feel like it'll help him tremendously. Just knowing that he always has an option in the running backs. Anytime me or Austin are in the game, it shouldn't be a problem for him to find us, or check down to us, or find us in the pass game just as much as he can find a receiver. We just got to continue to build that confidence in him to trust us with our pass catching, and I feel like we've been doing a great job with that."
Here are some more observations from Thursday's practice.
-- It was another solid day for the offense, as the unit continued to open up the playbook and stretch the field. The play that got the most positive reaction came on a pass from Jayden Daniels, who got most of the starting reps in practice, to Terry McLaurin down the left sideline. McLaurin got behind Emmanuels Forbes Jr., making for an easy grab that led to a score. The crowd erupted when McLaurin got the reception and started chanting his name as he jogged back to the huddle.
-- It seems like every play from Ekeler gets a big reaction from the fans in attendance. He sprinted for a decent gain and made a defender miss during the first 11-on-11 period, earning a few "ooohs" from the crowd.
-- Today was the first opportunity for fans and media members to see one-on-one drills between the offensive and defensive linemen, and both groups had some extra energy as they went through the drill. Of the offensive linemen, Brandon Coleman was the most consistent. He didn't lose a single rep and showed mostly impressive technique. He had a strong punt and quick feet that allowed him to mirror his opponent. Both skills were needed to stall Clelin Ferrell, who Coleman faced on the first rep, and Dante Fowler Jr. Coleman took all the reps as the starting left tackle today, and his pass protection skills certainly helped his case in winning the job.
-- Here are a couple more highlights from the O-line/D-line one-on-one drills: Daron Payne has an explosive bull rush, which he used on a rep against Sam Cosmi to get to the quarterback. Cosmi also had a win working against Jonathan Allen by slamming the Pro Bowl defensive tackle to the ground.
-- On the other side of the field, the wide receivers were facing off against the defensive backs. Luke McCaffrey had a nice rep against fellow rookie Mike Sainristil, beating him on the outside. Benjamin St-Juste, who has been one of the starting cornerbacks throughout camp, got an easy interception against Marcus Mariota.
-- The Commanders added more competition at kicker yesterday by picking up Riley Patterson from the Jacksonville Jaguars. Thursday was his first day of practice, and both he and Ramiz Ahmed were perfect from distances of 27, 33, 37, 47 and 53 yards. Quinn will be looking for consistency before making a final decision, but like several other positions on the roster, getting a clear answer on who will be ready for Week 1 will take some time.