Bijan Robinson dazzles in first drive in the NFL for the Atlanta Falcons
It took Bijan Robinson one carry to make his presence felt in the NFL. On Friday, the former Texas standout broke out an impressive 13-yard run in his first rush of the NFL preseason.
Robinson left Bengals defenders in his dust as he juked from hash to hash. There’s a reason the Atlanta Falcons drafted Robinson with the No. 8 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.
Robinson brought home the 2022 Doak Walker Award after exploding for 1580 yards on 258 carries with 18 touchdowns. The unanimous All-American also recorded 19 receptions for 314 yards and two scores to bring his total yardage to 1894 yards on the season.
Robinson followed up his early jaw-dropping rush with an even more impressive snag.
As of this report, the Atlanta Falcons are tied 0-0 with the Cincinnati Bengals. Eleven minutes remain in the second quarter.
Another impressive moment for Bijan Robinson
Those familiar with Robinson’s game won’t be surprised by Robinson’s electric start. Earlier this month, Falcons head coach Arthur Smith discussed his initial impressions of the talented running back.
“Pretty damn pleased with Bijan so far,” Smith said. “The way we use him, I think, is different than most, just philosophically with guys all over.”
Atlanta’s depth chart didn’t reflect Smith’s high praise. When the Falcons released their unofficial depth chart earlier this month, Robinson was listed as RB3 behind Cordarrelle Patterson and Tyler Allgeier.
Robinson isn’t the first Atlanta rookie to be listed surprisingly low on the team’s depth chart. First-round picks Kyle Pitts and Drake London faced similar obstacles early in their time with the organization. Robinson seemingly isn’t concerned with the trivial placement. Instead, he simply wants to help his team win.
“For me, I’m a player that loves to give an opportunity to my offense, whether it’s me lining up out wide, lining up in the slot, or trying to give the offense another opportunity to maximize ourselves,” Robinson said. “I think me just learning so many things, especially now, I think it can help you as a running back, but it can help you as an all-around player, not being one-dimensional but being able to do so many things and create more opportunities for yourself.”
Falcons general manager Fontenot likes what he’s seen from the highly-touted RB.
“He’s a true professional already, just the way he handles himself,” Fontenot said, via the team’s website. “We put a lot on these rookies’ plates — a lot on all these players’ plates. But the rookies, it’s a transition. … Bijan is doing a lot of different things for us. It’s taxing, but he’s handled everything so well and he is just even and consistent. He always has that $1 million smile on his face. We appreciate Bijan, and maturity is a good word to describe him.”