JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Jacksonville Jaguars receiver Allen Robinson had a breakout year in 2015 and that led many to expect him to become one of the league’s next elite receivers.
The Jaguars' offense has struggled and so has he and that’s a big reason the team is 2-4 heading into Thursday night’s game at Tennessee in a season that was supposed to see them contend for the AFC South title. To make things worse, Robinson just had one of the worst games of his career, catching just two passes for nine yards in the Jaguars’ 33-16 loss to Oakland.
"I would say it’s been one of the more frustrating years of me playing football in general," Robinson said. "But at the end of the day, I can’t let that have any effect on my play. At the end of the day, I’ve got to go out there and play. For me, just this week, just trying to get my mental [approach] right, help my teammates out, and all just try to go out there and have fun and make it easier on one another."
Allen Robinson caught just two passes for nine yards in the Jaguars' loss to Oakland. David Rosenblum/ Icon Sportswire
Robinson knew it wasn’t going to be easy in 2016 coming off a season in which he caught 80 passes for 1,400 yards and 14 touchdowns and made the Pro Bowl. Receivers coach Jerry Sullivan made it very clear to him during the offseason that he would be the focal point of opposing defenses. He would be double-teamed, defensive backs would be more physical with him, and teams would keep a safety over the top to keep Robinson from making the big plays down the field that he thrived upon last season.
It was something that Robinson was going to have to fight through, just like the league’s other elite receivers. A.J. Green, Julio Jones, Antonio Brown, DeAndre Hopkins and others all receive the same kind of attention and they all had to learn how to adjust.
It’s taking Robinson longer than he thought. He has 26 catches for 296 yards and three touchdowns and is averaging 11.4 yards per catch. Through six games last season he had 28 catches for 488 yards and five touchdowns and was averaging 17.4 yards per catch. Nearly the same number of catches, but the biggest difference is that Robinson isn’t making plays down the field.
That was his strength and a big part of the Jaguars’ offense in 2015. Blake Bortles gave the 6-foot-3 Robinson plenty of jump balls and back-shoulder throws and Robinson thrived on those plays. Robinson had 13 catches of 30 or more yards, including five in the first six games. He has just one this season.
"I’ve just got to go out there and play," Robinson said. "I can’t press for the big plays and things like that. I just got to go out there and make the plays when my number is called.
"It all depends on the looks and things that we’re getting. For me at the end of the day, I trust in the plan week in, week out."
Teammate Marqise Lee, who leads the Jaguars with 29 catches for 337 yards, said he can tell Robinson is frustrated with the way defenses are playing him this season. Defensive backs are being more physical with Robinson at the line of scrimmage and they’re pulling and tugging and banging him around during his routes. Sometimes that’s getting called but other times it’s not, and that’s irritating Robinson.
"You’ve got to be prepared for it," Lee said. "We know what we signed up for. We know you aren’t going to come off the line and get a clean release every time. We know things are not going to happen like that, but at the end of the day, we know that we just got to go out there and compete and A-Rob knows the exact same thing. He knows he’s going to go out there and do the things he needs to do.
"I can honestly tell you it’s not every week a receiver is going to get off [and have a great game]. There’s going to be some weeks where you have a slump and A-Rob, unfortunately, is having a little slump at the beginning of the year but he’s going to fix it up. Everybody knows how good A-Rob is so we’re not worried at all."
That includes Bortles, who has watched Robinson drop three passes this season and had two other passes that should have been completions bounce off Robinson’s hands and get intercepted -- including one in the end zone against Chicago two weeks ago.
Robinson dropped only four passes last season.
"It’s obviously very uncharacteristic for A-Rob to drop a ball," Bortles said. "I know from his point of view, he wants to get an opportunity so bad. He’s getting doubled; he’s getting safeties over the top of him. I know he’s juiced up and dying to make a play.
"From my point of view, it doesn’t matter if he drops one ball or 10 balls, every time I get a chance to throw Allen Robinson the ball, I’m gonna."
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