The NFL draft can be a volatile process. Things can change during the pre-draft process and even mid-round. Former NFL FB Michael Robinson experienced that firsthand in 2006. He thought he was going to be drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the third round. Instead, he ended up a member of the San Francisco 49ers via their fourth-round pick.
Robinson was on the Wednesday episode of the NFL Total Access podcast to discuss the NFC North. Most of the NFL world’s attention has turned to the draft since it’s later in April. He discussed his draft process and the feeling of elation and despair that came in the third round.
“The Pittsburgh Steelers called me in the middle of the third round,” Robinson said. “They said, it was a scout, ‘Hey, Mike, we love you. We’re gonna get you in this third round. They had two third-round picks. Their first third-round pick, they got a punt returner or kick returner. I’m like, ‘Oh my goodness, I did that at Penn State, but hey, whatever, they’ll get me with the next third-round pick.’… Early the next day, I’m dejected, I’m upset.”
Robinson went to Penn State, so to get a call from an in-state team saying it loves him and is going to draft him had to be an amazing experience. For it then to not happen had to be pretty earth-shattering. It did end up working out okay for Robinson. He was drafted only three picks into the fourth round by the 49ers. He played there for four years before joining the Seattle Seahawks and being a part of the 2013 Super Bowl-winning team before retiring.
So what did the Steelers do in that third round instead of taking Robinson? Well, they drafted DB Anthony Smith out of Syracuse and WR Willie Reid from Florida State.
Reid did offer plenty of special teams ability out of college. He returned 69 punts for 1,063 yards and three touchdowns. He also returned 16 kicks for 304 yards. However, he only appeared in seven games over two seasons with the Steelers. He was waived in August 2008 and spent time on the Philadelphia Eagles’ practice squad during the 2008 season. He was then signed in 2009 by the Dallas Cowboys but was cut before the first game of the season. That was the end of an NFL career in which he had four catches for 54 yards. He also has one punt return for 11 yards and seven kickoff returns for 146 yards.
Smith had a longer NFL career than Reid, playing six seasons. He spent three seasons with the Steelers, playing in 46 games and even starting 14. He had four interceptions and 85 total tackles for the team. He finished his career with seven total interceptions in 76 appearances along with 181 total tackles.
The NFL draft can be such a crapshoot for teams and players alike. The Steelers, for whatever reason, thought that at one point they were going to take Robinson. Or at least that’s what they communicated to him. Instead, they took Smith and Reid. Perhaps they didn’t think either player was going to be available when they picked.
Instead, Robinson was dejected, per his words, at the beginning of the next day. He then landed in a great situation with the 49ers before going on to win a Super Bowl with the Seahawks and current Steelers QB Russell Wilson. Who knows how different things would have been if the Steelers had taken Robinson? Maybe they wouldn’t have played FB John Kuhn nine games in the 2006 season which would have fundamentally changed the course of his career and the Green Bay Packers.
