When the Jaguars drafted former Michigan quarterback Denard Robinson in the fifth round of the 2013 draft, they labeled him an "offensive weapon" rather than as a running back or a receiver or, I suppose, a quarterback.
Whether that was because they weren't sure what to do with him is unclear. But it did seem that, thus far in his NFL journey, he was almost an afterthought, spending the first 22 games of his career gaining just 168 yards as a running back.
Sunday, then, was a revelation. Without an injured Toby Gerhart in the lineup, Robinson recorded 127 yards and his first career touchdown on 22 carries in Jacksonville's win vs. the Browns.
He's still listed as a receiver because he wears No. 16 and running backs aren't allowed to sport that number, but we saw in Week 7 that his original label was correct. He is an offensive weapon after all.
"The last time I carried the ball 20 times I was in college," Robinson said, via ESPN.com. "It's a great feeling. We knew it was coming. We've just got to stack them and up and get back to work."
Without Gerhart in the lineup, it was believed that Storm Johnson would get the majority of the carries. But after Johnson gained just 21 yards on 10 carries last week, the Jaguars gave Robinson his chance. Worked out pretty well.
And his first touchdown? Well, that was exciting for him.
“I saw the opening and hesitated a little bit and bounced it outside," Robinson said, via the Florida Times Union. “I was like, ‘I can’t get denied.’ It was my first touchdown, and it was amazing. It’s a great feeling to experience something that you’ve dreamed about your whole life. As a little kid, I thought about scoring a touchdown in the NFL and I did it."
At this point, it seems unlikely that Robinson would be the featured back when Gerhart returns. But as the Jaguars official website writes: "Robinson may nor may not be a player you want carrying 350 times a season, but he’s certainly a guy the Jaguars want to carry a lot more than has been the case to this point."
