Richard Dole-USA TODAY Sports
Coaches, players and general management of the Jacksonville Jaguars have all been singing praises about second-year wide receiver Allen Robinson throughout the entire offseason. Robinson played only 10 games last year as rookie, but was still able to haul in 48 balls for 548 yards and two touchdowns. He was on pace for much more than that, but the Penn State product went down with a stress fracture in his foot, causing him to miss the final six games of the season.
An eye-popping statistic for the Jags: the team has not had a wide receiver record a 1,000-yard season since Jimmy Smith in 2005 – a span that has seen every other team accomplish that feat besides the lowly Oakland Raiders. In addition, there have only been two Jaguars to ever do so: Smith nine times and Keenan McCardell three times.
Smith and McCardell were, at one time, one of the most feared tandems in the league. Jacksonville’s receivers have not accomplished much since their departure. The organization is hopeful that Robinson could be its next 1,000-yard wide out. The progression of Blake Bortles, the attention tight end Julius Thomas will draw and the development of fellow second-year receivers – Allen Hurns and Marqise Lee – will all play into that.
Lee has missed most of the offseason activities with a knee injury, but the team expects big things from him as well. Hurns, who burst on the scene last year as an undrafted free agent, led the team in receiving yards in touchdowns last year. Jacksonville is likely to use Robinson and Lee on the outside with Hurns in the slot, but the team has options.
Robinson has more or less emerged as the No. 1 receiver for the Jags, though nothing is set in stone. If Lee’s injury is more than Jacksonville is leading on, then Robinson will need to step up in a big way. Thomas is likely to be the focal point of the passing game early on, but once defenses realize what Robinson can do, they will be forced to pick their poison between the two.
Robinson has excellent size at 6-foot-2, 210 pounds. His speed is not elite, but reports throughout OTAs and minicamp have stated Robinson’s big play ability and wide catch radius. He does need to prove to the Jags that he can stay healthy, though. Again, he missed six contests in 2014, while also missing most of the team’s OTAs last spring.
Fans of the Jaguars should have a lot of faith in Robinson. He appears to have taken on a different role with the team. His focus, work ethic and spectacular plays have stuck out in the offseason. If he can continue this throughout the entire 2015 season, Jacksonville may just have its first 1,000-yard receiver in 10 years.
