Dallas Cowboys draft 2023: RB Bijan Robinson scouting report

Scouting report series on this year’s draft prospects with player projections and comparisons. This review is on Texas Longhorns running back Bijan Robinson.

We continue with our 2023 NFL Draft draft prospect review of players that could interest the Dallas Cowboys. Today we look at a running back Bijan Robinson from the Texas Longhorns.

Previous prospect reviews:

DT Bryan Bresee
CB Kelee Ringo
LB Andre Carter II
CB Joey Porter Jr
WR Jalin Hyatt
OG O’Cyrus Torrence

Bijan Robinson was given a 5-star recruit rating from 247 Sports having set records in his high school for both touchdowns and rushing yards. He had many high profile offers from teams like Alabama and Ohio State, but chose the Texas Longhorns for his collegiate career.

As a freshman in 2020, Robinson made his name known immediately and had many pundits talking about his talent. He finished the year with 899 total yards, six total touchdowns and averaged 8.2 yards per carry on 86 attempts.

In his sophomore season, Robinson played 10 games and had 1,422 total yards from scrimmage scoring 15 touchdowns. He averaged 5.8 yards per carry on 195 carries but also had three fumbles. He missed time during the season after a frightening neck injury. He also missed the rest of the year with an elbow injury.

In Robinson’s third year as a junior he exhibited his elite talents. During 12 games at Texas he finished with 1,894 total scrimmage yards (314 receiving yards and 1,580 rushing yards), 20 total touchdowns and averaged 6.1 yards per carry on 258 attempts. During his time in Texas he managed 18 games of over 100 yards rushing. He also has the fourth-most career touchdowns in Longhorn history, and third-most rushing touchdowns. He won the Doak Walker Award for the best running back in college and was nominated for the Heisman Trophy, finishing ninth.

RB Bijan Robinson
Texas Longhorns
Junior
5-star high school recruit
Height- 6”0
Weight- 220

Awards- 2022 Doak Walker Award
2022 All-American
2022 First-team BIG 12
2021 First-team BIG 12

Scorecard:
Overall- 91.1/100
Ball Carrying- 99
Contact Balance- 81
Receiving- 82
Blocking- 66
Speed- 83/100
Strength- 87/100
Acceleration- 85/100
Agility- 99/100

THE GOOD

• From the start of the game to the very end, Robinson brings the same energy and ferocity on every snap.
• Relishes contact and will keep his legs driving for extra yards.
• Shows high levels of vision to find the hole or open space.
• Good acceleration when breaking outside the tackles.
• Reliable on third down with plenty of versatility on short distance situations.
• A nasty and effective stiff-arm.
• Extremely elite levels of agility to get around defenders with an effective range of tools to make tacklers miss.
• Good in the passing game and finds good space out wide on check-downs and wheel routes.
• After-the-catch skills are elite.
• Top end speed is good
• Willing as a blocker and uses good instincts and intelligence to find pass rushers.

THE BAD

• Doesn’t have elite breakaway speed.
• Doesn’t have a power runner mentality or attitude.
• Contact balance is only classed as good.
• Will look to constantly run outside when he needs run inside with power and hit the defense in the mouth.
• Shows hesitation when running to the a-gaps.
• Runs tall and upright making him both easier to tackle at times, but also at risk of injury.
• Will run away from his blockers and into defenders due to impatience and not allowing his blocks to develop.
• Will engage blocks in the pass game but struggles to sustain them.

THE FIT

Bijan Robinson is an elite playmaker and the best in his class during a year that is very deep at running back. His versatility to play on any offense and elite running ability will make him a game-changing player in the NFL. His is able to play on all three downs which makes him even more enticing. He comes with injury concerns and longevity questions due to running style and issues of always looking for the homerun when he needs to stick with the power run game.

Top-five talent and one the best running back evaluations from the last few years.

(CBS Rank: 7)

COWBOYS COMPARISON

Darren McFadden