Brian Robison used to be a favorite over at Pro Football Focus, back when he was racking up high pass rush grades as a left defensive end in Leslie Frazier’s stop-the-run-on-the-way-to-the-quarterback defense.
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Then Mike Zimmer came along and Robison found his production declining, especially against the run. And Pro Football Focus noticed.
When PFF broke down the Vikings’ roster in their recent collaboration with ESPN, they listed Robison as one of the team’s five “bad” players.
One wonders what Robison thinks of PFF’s assessment, especially in light of the ringing endorsement he once gave the site:
"“I enjoy reading the PFF articles because they go into more detail than just the numbers. In our day and age numbers get you the accolades, but don’t always tell the whole story.” — Brian Robison – DE, Minnesota Vikings"
Robison speaks the truth. Numbers don’t always tell the whole story. Two years ago, the PFF’s detailed analytics made the case that Robison was underrated. Now those analytics make the case that he’s overrated.
What a difference a year and a new scheme make. That being said, I don’t personally think the Vikings should cut Robison. He’s still valuable as a situational pass rusher/veteran presence.
But the Vikings would do well to find a more scheme-friendly left end to slide in there in running downs. Maybe Scott Crichton will prove to be the guy. Maybe it will be someone else.
Either way, Brian Robison’s days as an every-down player should be over. And he might want to contact PFF and retract that testimonial.
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