Buffalo Bills 2024 NFL Draft Scouting Spotlight: EDGE Chop Robinson

Robinson is an explosive edge rusher from the Big 10

The Buffalo Bills remain in need of young talent in their defensive end corps — new faces to add as a complement to another young pillar that exists in 23-year-old defensive end Greg Rousseau. Rousseau’s body type indicates a player who primarily wins with long levers, natural strength and adequate NFL explosiveness in both facets of the game.

Additionally, the Bills provided a sound, two-year investment in former 2020 second-round pick A.J. Epenesa to provide a level of stability across from Rousseau.

As an organization, the Bills tried to make a huge move to bolster their pass rush in 2022 with the signing of Von Miller to a lucrative contract. Miller, a very different body type from Rousseau, was brought in to be a game-changing pass rusher and game closer. Miller’s ACL tear shelved him for the final run of the season in 2022. In 2023, Miller was a shell of his former self, and he made little to no impact for the entirety of the season and into the playoffs.

That’s not something you can rely on in 2024 with no signs of improvement. Unfortunately, the Bills are now stuck with Miller’s now-reworked contract for at least another season. The hope is that he improves with more rest, but that’s far from any guarantee with Miller heading into his age-35 season.

One player who is among the most explosive pass rushers in the 2024 NFL Draft class is Penn State’s Demeioun “Chop” Robinson. We’ll of course get to my thoughts on what I observed in his film film, but merely looking Robinson over shows an end who’s hard to contain with first-step quickness and athleticism to turn the corner. Robinson is viewed as a late first-round or early second-round pick at this point in the process with wiggle room for that perception to change after his 2024 NFL Scouting Combine showing.

Let’s discuss Chop’s game and decipher just how good of a fit he might be for the Bills at pick No. 28 overall. For this exercise, game film in 2023 was analyzed from matchups versus Michigan, Ohio State, and Iowa.

Chop Robinson Scouting Report

Demeioun “Chop” Robinson is an underclassman who declared early for the draft, beginning his career at the University of Maryland where he was highly thought of as a high school recruit in the recruiting class of 2021. After one season, Robinson took his talents to Happy Valley, PA where he burst onto the scene as an explosive and noteworthy rusher with one of the better defenses in college football over the past couple of years. As a junior in 2023, Robinson amassed four sacks and 7.5 tackles for loss.

NFL combine testing

• 6’3”, 254 pounds
• 4.48 40-yard dash
• 34.5” vertical jump
• 10’8” broad jump

Positives

• First step pops, play in and play out; consistently first off the ball
• Explosion converts to flexibility and speed as he turns the corner on offensive tackles
• Elite burst allows him to attack outside shoulder and quickly redirect for inside counters
• Michigan (2023) completely altered mid-game game plan largely due to Robinson’s dominance in traditional dropbacks
• Competitive as a run defender despite size limitations
• Experience with dropping into coverage and doing an effective job at it
• Has worked into multiple alignments standing up and with hand in dirt

Negatives

• Finds himself on the ground far too often as a pass rusher and run defender
• Speed to power doesn’t show itself enough and was stymied often when trying to rip through tackles when speed didn’t win
• Natural instinct is to get upfield as fast as possible, which damages run-game presence
• Bull in a china shop at times; Needs to begin honing skills to work in unison instead of “crashing” with recklessness
• Only 11.5 sacks in 30 career games played

Why Chop Robinson fits the Bills

The Bills have plenty of identifiable needs as they collectively turn their focus toward the 2024 NFL Draft. Among the keys in that realm is for One Bills Drive to invest draft resources into the defensive line. It just so happens that the latter parts of the first round are a sweet spot in this year’s class for a small run on edge rushers to take place.

Despite having already invested significant resources into the defensive line, the team laying any kind of trust in Von Miller for 2024 would be misguided. Sure, a potential out after this season could be in the cards.

The Bills need continue adding youth and players on more affordable contracts. If the team wants to find a player in the archetype of Miller, Robinson does make sense to be the selection at pick 28. Some of Bills Mafia may be frustrated by another valuable resource being used on the defensive line in Round 1, but the reality is that you can never have too many investments into premium positions.

Edge rushers are among the most-coveted players on defense, and teams must find a way to continually infuse the position with blue-chip talent. Regarding these Buffalo Bills, the unit isn’t a finished product given the unfortunate injury to Miller. Chop Robinson offers immediate speed and promising upside to a unit sorely in need of that from a young and fiscally conscious contract.