With the signing of Patrick Queen and drafting of Payton Wilson, Mark Robinson saw his path to defensive snaps shrivel up. With the reunion of Tyler Matakevich, his roster spot might’ve melted away, too. A third-year player who has struggled to earn the coaching staff’s trust, Robinson enters camp officially on the bubble.
Dave Bryan made a solid case for why Matakevich’s signing could point to Cole Holcomb’s health. The chance he begins camp on Active/PUP with an uncertain timeline to return following his devastating knee injury last November. But if Holcomb can be medically cleared for Week 1, he’ll make it this time. Robinson’s spot feels more tenuous.
Before Matakevich was brought back, there were four inside linebackers who, if healthy, were clearly ahead of Robinson: Elandon Roberts, Queen, Wilson, and Holcomb. That slated Robinson into the No. 5 position, a spot reserved for special teams duty. Enter Matakevich, a special teams dynamo during his first stint with Pittsburgh and a role he continued in Buffalo, and Robinson’s standing there looks awfully shaky.
Mark Robinson played plenty of special teams snaps in 2023, over 300 of them, but his play didn’t particularly stand out. Only four tackles, and just two of them were of the solo variety. In fairness, Matakevich only had two solo tackles with the Buffalo Bills last season but he’s been far more productive at his peak.
It’s easy to see Matakevich beat him out for the job. Mark Robinson flashed and impressed me during his rookie camp. He was a college running back who didn’t look out of sorts and made such a late transition when he flipped to linebacker during his last year of school. But he’s clearly struggled to gain the coaching staff’s trust. DC Teryl Austin admitted it before 2023 even began, telling reporters to consider him for a bigger role “next year.” That proved true throughout the season. Despite the team hemorrhaging inside linebackers, the team found everyone to play over Robinson: an unretired Myles Jack, an unretired Blake Martinez, and a practice squad Mykal Walker.
Mark Robinson will need to earn his roster spot this training camp. The 80 percent odds we gave him earlier this offseason are now far too high. He’s closer to 50 percent and arguably below. Unless Holcomb simply isn’t ready by Week 1, which is possible (though signing Matakevich for any defensive help isn’t practical), someone from this inside linebacker group is getting cut. Right now, that man is looking like Robinson.
