Demarcus Robinson and the breakout game no one saw coming

Coming into Week 2, there was absolutely no reason to believe that Demarcus Robinson could put together the sort of performance he had on Sunday.

There’s no other way to say it: Demarcus Robinson came out of nowhere on Sunday.

When I type the word “nowhere,” I mean it in the most literal sense. There was no reason why anyone—from Andy Reid to Jon Gruden to John Dorsey, the man who drafted him—would have expected the sort of dominant performance put up by the Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver. On Sunday afternoon against the Oakland Raiders, Robinson not only fulfilled the cliche’d “next man up” motto, but he put on a clinic that made at least some of us stand and applaud.

Two things need to be made clear (before we dive into both):

1. Demarcus Robinson has never even hinted that this sort of performance was possible in his entire professional career.

2. Demarcus Robinson wasn’t just the recipient of Patrick Mahomes’ excellent passes or the target in Andy Reid’s creative schemes. Robinson elevated his game to a new level entirely on Sunday—one that deserves much more credit than he might get as a “one game wonder” (so far) in this high-powered Chiefs offense.

Before we get to the exhilarating performance, let’s actually paint us all with the same brush as “doubters.”

Out of nowhere

Take a look around and ask if anyone knew Demarcus Robinson could put up nearly 200 yards receiving and 2 touchdowns with one exceptional catch after another. If anyone says “yes,” you’ll know who is willing to lie to you.

Until this point in the NFL, Robinson has never put together the sort of productive performance as he did on Sunday. His previous high for receiving yardage in any game came on a single 89-yard bomb last December that gave Patrick Mahomes his 50th touchdown on the season.

That was it. Even with the benefit of a single pass giving him nearly 90 yards, Robinson had, well, only 89 yards in that game—and that was his career-high to date.

What’s interesting is that three of Robinson’s four best games in terms of receiving yardage as a professional football player have come against the Oakland Raiders. What makes that sound less impressive is that the totals in those games are only 89, 69, and 38 yards, respectively. In short, the total yards in those previous “best” performances barely eclipse the 178 yards he put up on Sunday.

Even during games where Robinson has received as many targets as he had on Sunday (only 6), he’s never come close. He had 10 targets against Denver in Mahomes’ first start in late 2017 and came away with only 4 catches for 31 yards. He had 7 targets against the Baltimore Ravens late last season, but only generated 42 receiving yards on his 5 catches. You get the idea.

To date, Robinson had 500 receiving yards and 4 touchdowns in his 49-game career coming into Sunday. In a single day, he put up 34 percent of his career yards and 50 percent of his career scores. That sort of disproportional performance is why it was such a shock.

The only reason any of us had any reason to believe that Robinson had this in him goes back to his workout stats for the 2016 NFL Draft and some game film from his days at the University of Florida—likely from as far back as 2014. Even then his best numbers came against the weakest competition. He put up 216 receiving yards and 2 touchdowns against Kentucky when given 15 catches. He put up137 yards on Eastern Kentucky and another123 against Eastern Michigan—all in 2014.

From there, suspensions and defensive attention (and lack of consistency) didn’t help matters. His final year with the Gators produced 47 catches for 520 yards and 2 touchdowns—not exactly the sort of body of work that leaps off the page.

During the pre-draft process, it was clear that Robinson had pro-level acceleration and athleticism. It was also clear that he had his own demons to work out (suspended four separate times in three years in Gainesville for marijuana use and meeting with a marketing official) and that he’d never fully put it together on the field.

Through three NFL seasons, that remained true. Until Sunday.

The dominant display

Back to the win over the Raiders.

Credit needs to be given to both the head coach and the quarterback here, to be sure. Demarcus Robinson ran the routes designed by a Hall of Fame play caller in Andy Reid, a man who is now tied with Chuck Noll for the all-time wins list for head coaches at 209. Robinson also caught passes from the reigning MVP. Those are nice luxuries to have as a wide receiver.

That said, what Robinson did on Sunday was elevate these luxuries and turn them into a jaw-dropping display on his own. Robinson’s route running was exceptional on Sunday, and his performance overall was efficient (6 catches on 6 targets). On some plays, his downfield speed and tremendous acceleration drew Mahomes attention and trust. On other plays, he proved capable of making the tough competitive catch. Overall, it was a highlight reel that showed Robinson is much more well-rounded as a wide receiver than anyone could have expected.

Check out this particular play, the second of Robinson’s touchdowns on the afternoon:

This entire play is a masterclass for a cornerback and the instructor is Demarcus Robinson. First, Robinson’s athleticism must be respected and Raiders corner Gareon Conley stays with DRob as it looks like he might try to fake him going outside. Conley maintains his correct spot for that split second, but thereafter, Robinson goes from faking outside to looking inside, which turns out to be another fake. Then Robinson is flat-out gone on the outside again, and Conley is already a half-step behind after being fooled by the look. Instead of dragging across, Robinson’s route actually takes him deep vertically.

From there, Conley deserves serious credit for staying as close as he did, but at the pass arrives from Mahomes in the end zone, Robinson’s strength, size, and hands all allow him to haul in a very tough catch even as Conley is a bit reckless for not having turned his head around. Somehow, Robinson is able to not only pull in the catch but maintain possession as he collapses into the end zone. Suddenly the Chiefs were up by 18 points.

This catch is important because it’s not a case of another speedy receiver inheriting bombs from Patrick Mahomes’ cannon of an arm. In this case, Robinson was the one making Mahomes look good with his technique, his hands, his tracking ability and his acceleration. 

Who knows if Robinson will ever put up another game like this as a professional receiver—at least with the Kansas City Chiefs. Travis Kelce and Sammy Watkins remains mouths to feed and rightfully so. Mecole Hardman looks every bit as dangerous as Brett Veach hoped which bodes well for the future. When Tyreek Hill gets back, the weapons locker will be more loaded than ever.

Eventually Robinson will be given less snaps and less targets. If/when that happens, it won’t be because Robinson isn’t capable of big plays. It’s simply about the team’s high level of talent. This last performance caught us all by surprise, but we won’t be fooled again. For as long as the Chiefs have a need, they have a man who can fill it. Robinson is capable of much, much more than anyone had reason to believe.