Denard Robinson Starves, Jacksonville Jaguars Lose
By Luke Sims
Feed Denard Robinson. That should be the game plan for every game.
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With Robinson’s recent success, the Indianapolis Colts took notice and stacked the box against the second year runner. Offensive coordinator Jedd Fisch couldn’t stretch the field, though, opting for short passes and seemingly encouraging quarterback Blake Bortles to throw to the running backs on the flats.
That’s well and good, but it failed to open it up for Robinson to make plays in the running game.
After averaging 97 yards and 18 carries per game over the last four weeks, Robinson came out and dumped a meager 25 yards on 15 carries. He also tacked on a season-high four receptions for 47 yards.
That’s not exactly the amount of production the Jaguars would like to see from their best offensive weapon.
Robinson fed on Blake Bortles’ emergence as the franchise quarterback. He took advantage of the room underneath as teams were forced to defend against Bortles’ willingness to take risks and strike downfield.
On Sunday the Colts dared the Jaguars to pass and Jacksonville never bit. As a result, Robinson led the team in receptions and was slammed to the turf when running the ball. His 1.8 yards per carry his his worst average of the season.
As a result, the Jaguars starved their best player. They didn’t put him in an opportunity to succeed. They misused his skill set, particularly in a terrible goal line situation when Fisch wanted Robinson to try and go through the middle. The play calling was a disservice to the offensive weapon.
Sadly, Robinson’s carries have declined each week since the Jaguars’ win over the Cleveland Browns in week seven. Correlation doesn’t necessarily represent causation, but giving your best weapon opportunities to run the ball seems like a logical step in the right direction. Hopefully the trend is reversed next week against the New York Giants.