There seems to be a sense of caution when it comes to fan expectations for wide receiver Allen Robinson II. Acquired via trade earlier this offseason, he is a physical specimen for the position and has a few 1000-yard seasons in his rearview mirror.
Coming off of a season-ending foot injury, it’s fair to wonder what we’re looking at through the windshield, however. To that end, veteran cornerback, very much not tight end Patrick Peterson shared his own observations of what he has seen out of Robinson while working with him—and against him—these past few weeks before the break.
“It’s the subtle movement, the angles he’s trying to attack on a defensive back, little things like that that every receiver doesn’t have”, he told Joe Rutter of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. “If you have a receiver like that, you want to try to exploit his route running and give him the best advantage of being successful”.
Robinson is 6’2”, 220 pounds, and he very much looks like it on the practice field. Of the wide receivers who are locks to make the team, the only one who is of similar size is George Pickens, who is taller but lankier, yet also physically aggressive.
While never a blazer, only timing in the 4.6-second range in the 40-yard dash during the NFL Scouting Combine back in 2014, that hasn’t ever slowed him down. Somewhat similar to JuJu Smith-Schuster, he is a bigger-bodied, slot-capable receiver who has the elusive ability to break plays. He does have a dozen 40-plus-yard plays in his playing history, though none in the past two years.
Then again, things haven’t been easy for him since the 2020 season. He has had to struggle not only through injuries himself—including the surgery-requiring foot injury last year—but also inopportune quarterback situations.
After the Chicago Bears moved on from Mitch Trubisky following the 2020 season, they drafted Justin Fields, who is a run-first quarterback very much raw in the passing department. He is averaging fewer than 22 pass attempts per game for his career, and 13 completions—not ideal for any wide receiver.
Just when he may have thought he was catching a break signing with the Los Angeles Rams to play with Matthew Stafford, the veteran quarterback was dealing with an injury that prevented him from throwing all offseason. He couldn’t build a rapport with the new target, and thus relied on his old weapons. Just as they were starting to click, Robinson got hurt.
Now he has a full offseason to work on his game with the Steelers’ Kenny Pickett, which is precisely what they’re doing. And Patrick Peterson believes he has the tools to be a legitimate weapon for this offseason based on his ability to dominate his routes.
To have two excellent route runners among your top three receivers is a real treat, and can help open up the deep ball for somebody like Pickens as well. More often than not the best target is the open target, and Allen knows how to get open. So perhaps Steelers fans should start raising their expectations for him just a bit. If not now, he’ll have training camp and the preseason to set the table for himself.
