Dallas Cowboys: Reggie Robinson on the outside looking in
By Reid Hanson
One only needs to gaze upon the Dallas Cowboys depth chart to notice there’s a numbers crunch at the cornerbacks position. Not everyone is going to make the cut and someone good is going to be sent packing this summer. No better example of this than cornerback turned safety turned cornerback again, Reggie Robinson.
That’s sad to many of us who fell in love with Robinson as a draft prospect last year. The 6-foot-1, 205lb cornerback from Tulsa was an athletic stud. Blessed with size, speed, quickness, and tenacity, he was the complete package at CB.
Reggie Robinson is going to have a tough time making the Dallas Cowboys roster this season
It’s no wonder so many Dallas Cowboys fell in love with him and why even Will McClay called Robinson his own “pet cat“. But for as much as the scouts and fans loved Robinson, it didn’t appear the coaching staff was quite as sold. They seemed to resent the “scouts picks” in the 2020 Draft and banished said players (Robinson and Bradlee Anae) to a season of bench-warming and inactive designations.
I think Reggie Robinson II will be one of the steals in the middle of the draft... Productive, Physical, Fast, Strong!
— Ben Fennell (@BenFennell_NFL) April 22, 2020
6'0, 200lbs with a sub 4.5 40yd dash and a 10'6 Broad Jump:
🔸Jeffery Okudah
🔸C.J. Henderson
🔸Reggie Robinson IIhttps://t.co/ZGCHachzvc pic.twitter.com/IF9i8qwHwh
Now in year two it appears Robinson will get a fair shot to make the team at his natural position of cornerback. Playing under a new defensive coordinator may be all he needs to get a shot to get on the field. The only problem is that aforementioned numbers crunch…
Reggie Robinson is a developmental player on a team chock-full of developmental players.
Let’s look at the numbers: the Dallas Cowboys rarely keep more than six cornerback on their final roster so let’s operate under those parameters. Trevon Diggs and Kalvin Joseph are locks. Jourdan Lewis was just re-signed so he’s a lock as well.
It would be surprising if Dallas gave up on their rookie Nahshon Wright. And C.J. Goodwin is a special teams ace and no matter how much fans want to disregard him, he’s basically a sure thing to make the team.
That brings the number to five. With one more spot left we have Maurice Canady, Anthony Brown, and Reggie Robinson battling it out. Brown seems the favorite since he’s the best slot corner on the team and he can play outside in a pinch, as well.
Maurice Canady was Mike McCarthy’s big analytics signing last season. The guy opted out in 2021 but last seen he was one of the most efficient boundary corners in the league. He’s nothing exciting but he plays a safe brand of football and has a high floor (which pairs nicely with the two uber-raw rookie CBs on the roster).
Then we have Reggie. An guy we’ve seen almost nothing from as a pro. He’s coming from a small program, with raw skills. He’s a developmental player on a team chock-full of developmental players.
With pick 123 in the 2020 NFL Draft, the #Cowboys selected Reggie Robinson II, CB, Tulsa.
— Kent Lee Platte (@MathBomb) April 25, 2020
He posted an elite #RAS with elite size, great speed, great explosiveness, okay agility at the CB position.https://t.co/crtlhTzwYq#DallasCowboys pic.twitter.com/gVRQKAPAHn
A lot can happen between now and the end of training camp. One injury can make all the difference. And if Jourdan Lewis gets moved to safety (as some have been clamoring for) it could open things up for Robinson to make the cut.
And while Anthony Brown is a better cornerback both inside and outside than Jourdan Lewis, he’s more expensive and more injury prone. That makes him far from a lock.
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And between Canady, Brown, and Robinson, it’s Robinson who’s the cheapest (you hear that Stephen Jones?). So we don’t have to start shoveling dirt on the second year draft pick quite yet. The kid has a chance, we just need to recognize the hill he has to climb to secure a spot.
The best news? We have training camp this year. This will all play out on the field for the world to see. Now, I don’t expect a level playing field between him and someone like say, Nahshon Wright. But I do expect he’ll get a chance and if he can prove he’s far and away a better cornerback, the Cowboys will have to make room one way or another.
light. Must Read. With Jourdan Lewis re-signed, will Dallas cut Anthony Brown?
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Buckle up Dallas Cowboys fans, this is going to be a fun summer.