Left tackle Cam Robinson was a key cog for the Jacksonville Jaguars until he wasn't. A second-round pick in the 2017 draft, Robinson was a fixture of the offensive line for several years before he was traded to the Minnesota Vikings ahead of the 2024 deadline. He did an adequate job of filling for Christian Darrishaw during the regular season but came crashing down under the spotlight of the playoffs. Looking back, the Jags were right to move on from him.
The Vikings traded for Robinson because they were in the middle of a playoff run and wanted to make sure that quarterback Sam Darnold had the best possible blindside protector after Darrisaw suffered a knee injury that cut his season short.
With Robinson in the fold, Minnesota went on to win nine consecutive games. Along the way, the former Alabama product gave up a respectable two sacks and 29 total pressures. But then the finale came, and he surrendered one sack and a whopping nine pressures. The worst had yet to come, though.
In the playoff game against the Rams, Robinson surrendered a jaw-dropping 12 pressures and a sack. Moreover, he posted a measly Pro Football Focus pass-blocking score of 39.5. Rookie edge rusher Jared Verse routinely put a clown suit on the veteran left tackle, registering seven total pressures. Similarly, teammate Kobie Turner contributed with five total pressures and two sacks.
Darnold ended up getting sacked a concerning nine times. Not all was on Robinson, but he certainly contributed to the Vikings' struggles.
Robinson is now slated to hit the open market in March, and it's fair to wonder if his last two outings will have a negative impact on his stock.
The Jaguars had a fine replacement for Cam Robinson in Walker Little waiting
The Jacksonville Jaguars made the right call when they moved on from Cam Robinson. That said, you can make the case that it took them too long. After all, they had a more than capable replacement in Walker Little waiting for his chance.
Perhaps Little wasn't ready to take over, but he routinely flashed when he filled in for Robinson. He also came close to beating Jawaan Taylor for the right tackle job before 2022 despite the fact that he had mostly lined up on the left side throughout his football career.
Either way, Little delivered on game day, and the Jags rightly rewarded him with a three-year deal worth $45 million not long after Robinson got the boot. On the other hand, it's fair to wonder how things would've played out if the team's brass had pulled the trigger earlier last year.
Robinson was set to make $17 million in 2024 but none of it was guaranteed. Had they released him or traded him in the offseason, even if it was for a Day 3 pick, they would freed up a considerable amount of cap space, which they could've then used to address other needs.
Instead, Trent Baalke waited until the trade deadline was near to move on from Robinson and had to pay part of his salary to get a deal done.
The bottomline is that moving on from Robinson was always the right move even if it came too late.