Could Reggie Robinson have a future at Safety?

[CowboyRoy]

It's something we will watch in camp.

What are we going to watch?

 

[cern]

I have no doubt mac and company will make the best decision regarding reggie.

 

[fivetwos]

It's all going to be about trust. We saw last season, Donovan Wilson have a great camp, but only played minimal snaps, even with Jeff Heath in and out of the lineup. Thompson wasn't as good as Wilson, but the coaches trusted him more.

The secondary as a whole needs to be rebuilt. We believe Diggs/Robinson are apart of the future, but nobody else spot is in pen after this season. DB is going to be a priority need in 2021 no matter what as they have future holes at both CB and Safety.

I was going to make a thread about Wilson, asking some folks who saw him at A&M.

Was he Garretted? Or Marinellied? Lol

He got very little chance it seemed. I suppose the coaches knew what was on the line and didnt want to go with a rookie back there.

Maybe you want to do it, but I definitely am looking for more info on Wilson.

I just dont think they ought to play around with Robinson. Leave him at his best spot, whichever that may be. I'm guessing corner, but its unclear what they want to do at safety, so let's see.

 

[Cowboyny]

What are we going to watch?

If they having Robinson play some safety.

 

[CowboyRoy]

If they having Robinson play some safety.

So what if they do?

 

[Cowboyny]

I was going to make a thread about Wilson, asking some folks who saw him at A&M.

Was he Garretted? Or Marinellied? Lol

He got very little chance it seemed. I suppose the coaches knew what was on the line and didnt want to go with a rookie back there.

Maybe you want to do it, but I definitely am looking for more info on Wilson.

I just dont think they ought to play around with Robinson. Leave him at his best spot, whichever that may be. I'm guessing corner, but its unclear what they want to do at safety, so let's see.

-It's very possible they just leave him at CB and start his development at the position.
-MM did mention at the press conference after the draft, they had options at safety, which he mentioned Robinson by name.
-Wilson should get a better chance this year as his new assistant coach, coached him at Texas A&M.

 

[RodeoJake]

I think Robinson will need a season to adjust to the NFL speed. The level of competition that played against Tulsa was pretty unimpressive for the most part. He has the talent. It's just a matter of cleaning up his game and adjusting to a high level of competition.

If you watched him play, it was easy to see the potential.

 

[xwalker]

All the talk recently has all been about acquiring Jamal Adams and upgrading the safety position. We could have an intriguing safety prospect already on the roster not name Donovan Wilson, but rather Reggie Robinson:

-He is a former High School Safety
-Came from a zone heavy, defensive scheme at Tulsa
-Considered to have strong ball skills, is tenacious run defender
-Is considered a project at CB needing a lot of development with his technique, footwork
-Needs work in adapting to press coverage

It will be interesting to see if they start him at Safety as that is the quickest way to get him playing meaniful snaps. If they develop him as a CB, he probably won't be able to see the field in any capacity outside of special teams until 2021. Corner is the more important position, so it's quite possible they play the long game.

Good question! You've become one of the best at creating new threads. It's great how you just want to discuss football with no antics.

Robinson is a little bigger than Xavier Woods (6-1, 205 vs 5-11, 197).

Tulsa and Press-Man vs Zone Coverage:

• I saw a draft report that said Tulsa played primarily zone; however, in the games that I watched (all from 2019) the outside CBs played almost all press-man.
• When Robinson covered the slot WR he often played off-man.
• Overall Tulsa played primarily press-man with the outside CBs. They often played zone against TEs and that sometimes included the slot WR.
• Many team play zone with the LBs and other inside coverage players but that's not really a zone scheme when the outside CBs are playing press man.
• I just re-watched the first 3 series from one of their 2019 games and the outside CBs only played zone on 1 snap and that was only the CBs on the side of the field with the slot WR.
• They played 2 man zone against the slot WR and outside WR on that side.
• The 2-man zone has become a common alternate coverage to prevent tactics that offenses employ to cross the slot WR and outside WR on rub routes (pick plays).

Robinson at Safety:

• The new scheme with Quarters coverage (A 2-deep Safety alignment) favors having both Safeties that are closer to being a CB than they are to being a LB.
• Short area quickness and man-coverage ability are more important than for either box SS or signal-high FS.
• Xavier Woods has very good short area quickness and man coverage ability.
• Woods played as the "starting" Nickel CB the final 3rd of his rookie season (After Scandrick went to IR).
• They have many options at Safety.
  • HaHa
  • Woods
  • Donovan Wilson
  • Thompson
  • Worley (played both Safety and CB last season)
  • Awuzie
• My "gut" feeling is that they would like for Robinson to become a starting CB in 2021
  • It's possible I just have indigestion...
  • Projected 2021 top 3 CBs:
    • Diggs
    • Brown
    • Robinson

 

[tm1119]

CB is obviously the bigger $ position so you leave him there until he fails, but yes, I do think he has a future at S. He was a 3 star S recruit out of HS, Tulsa likely moved him because he was by far their best athlete. I think he could possibly excel as a zone CB, but I thought his technique was pretty bad in man coverage at Tulsa. Obviously that can be coached, he no doubt has the size and athleticism to run with anyone.
Def has the size and tackling ability for S as well. He was 1 of my pet cats going into the draft, will be very interesting to see how he develops.

 

[Rayman70]

its all just fantasy fb until we see it on the field. WE JUST DUNNO. Everything is on limbo

 

[Techsass]

CB is obviously the bigger $ position so you leave him there until he fails, but yes, I do think he has a future at S. He was a 3 star S recruit out of HS, Tulsa likely moved him because he was by far their best athlete. I think he could possibly excel as a zone CB, but I thought his technique was pretty bad in man coverage at Tulsa. Obviously that can be coached, he no doubt has the size and athleticism to run with anyone.
Def has the size and tackling ability for S as well. He was 1 of my pet cats going into the draft, will be very interesting to see how he develops.

I hope he lives up to your expectations. It's always cool when the team actually grabs one of our pet cats & we get to see how they end up.

 

[xwalker]

There was a clear drop-off when Heath couldn't play due to injury. Thompson is just an average, backup safety with zero upside.

The drop off wasn't because Heath was great. The drop-off was because this coaching staff can't seem to coach when guys aren't available.

Thompson is average. Wasn't implying he wasn't. He's not starting for us.

"Be careful what you wish for." An a old saying that is very appropriate as applied to Cowboys fans and Heath/Thompson.

Heath was a much better player than most Cowboys fans believe. He obviously had limitations, but they've had much worse.

Heath

• The Cowboys defensive scheme had become dependent on having an SS (Heath) with excellent speed.
• They often had Heath up on the line in an attempt to stop the bleeding in run defense.
• That often resulted in Heath ending up in intermediate to deep coverage despite starting all the way up at the line.
  • Most Strong Safeties can't play that style because they don't run a 4.4 forty.
  • Very few Safeties can run down Saquon Barkley from behind.
• The new scheme (2-deep Safety alignment) should be better for most players like X.Woods but likely would have been worse for Heath.
  • Speed is not as needed in 2-deep but short area quickness/agility is more critical and that's were Heath was limited.

Thompson

• I had hoped that Thompson would excel by being moved from FS to SS.
• In most schemes the SS position is good for a big but speed limited Safety.
• Thompson had started 16 games in 2017 as FS for the Giants.
• At 6-2, 211 with limited speed, I thought moving him to SS might offset his speed limitations and highlight his size.
• Unfortunately Thompson's tackling was terrible and the Cowboys scheme that had become dependent on Heath's speed struggled with Thompson.
• Thompson often had to play back further from the line to keep from getting exposed in coverage or beaten to the corner by RBs on outside runs or swing passes.
• Hopefully the new scheme (2-deep Safety alignment) is a better fit for Thompson; although, his tackling must improve.

 

[Cowboyny]

Good question! You've become one of the best at creating new threads. It's great how you just want to discuss football with no antics.

Robinson is a little bigger than Xavier Woods (6-1, 205 vs 5-11, 197).

Tulsa and Press-Man vs Zone Coverage:

• I saw a draft report that said Tulsa played primarily zone; however, in the games that I watched (all from 2019) the outside CBs played almost all press-man.
• When Robinson covered the slot WR he often played off-man.
• Overall Tulsa played primarily press-man with the outside CBs. They often played zone against TEs and that sometimes included the slot WR.
• Many team play zone with the LBs and other inside coverage players but that's not really a zone scheme when the outside CBs are playing press man.
• I just re-watched the first 3 series from one of their 2019 games and the outside CBs only played zone on 1 snap and that was only the CBs on the side of the field with the slot WR.
• They played 2 man zone against the slot WR and outside WR on that side.
• The 2-man zone has become a common alternate coverage to prevent tactics that offenses employ to cross the slot WR and outside WR on rub routes (pick plays).

Robinson at Safety:

• The new scheme with Quarters coverage (A 2-deep Safety alignment) favors having both Safeties that are closer to being a CB than they are to being a LB.
• Short area quickness and man-coverage ability are more important than for either box SS or signal-high FS.
• Xavier Woods has very good short area quickness and man coverage ability.
• Woods played as the "starting" Nickel CB the final 3rd of his rookie season (After Scandrick went to IR).
• They have many options at Safety.
  • HaHa
  • Woods
  • Donovan Wilson
  • Thompson
  • Worley (played both Safety and CB last season)
  • Awuzie
• My "gut" feeling is that they would like for Robinson to become a starting CB in 2021
  • It's possible I just have indigestion...
  • Projected 2021 top 3 CBs:
    • Diggs
    • Brown
    • Robinson

,

-As you know, I don't watch the tape (probably should, always feel like would be a novice at it), but I do a lot of research around the web to draw my own conclusions. I have a slight photographic memory since I was a kid, this allows me to remember in detail, specifics what I have read about the subject manner.

-What I read about Robinson was that Tulsa ran a zone heavy scheme. Many have projected him to become a year 2 or 3 starter at the CB position, more of a project. The majority of development lies within his technique, poor footwork, tendency to play too handsy when he is beaten, etc. I remember MM state after the draft, they have options at safety, some players on the current roster along with Robinson who can play there if needed.

-A little out of the box thinking I drew my own conclusions: depth at corner, has experience is zone coverage, new scheme in which the safeties are used more like cornerbacks, etc. He does possess the physical traits to play either spot. Quickest way to see on the field experience might be more at safety. Didn't realize that Tulsa played as much man coverage as what you seen on tape.

-Clearly the CB position is more important then at safety. The CB market is highly more expensive. I still believe after this season, adding another db is going to be a high priority come draft time. Early on I get the sense Xavier Woods out of the 4 fa's is the player most likely to get an extension.

-I believe the coaches are going to try to get Robinson's feet wet in the defensive sub-packages this year, along with being a core special teamer. Will he see time on the outside or perhaps some work in the interior of the secondary, that's to be determined.

 

[Irvin88_4life]

Robinson is a press man corner and didn't play a zone heavy scheme. He followed the other teams best receiver and played press man the entire game without safety help. Do you guys watch film or just go by what you hear from someone else.

 

[xwalker]

,

-As you know, I don't watch the tape (probably should, always feel like would be a novice at it), but I do a lot of research around the web to draw my own conclusions. I have a slight photographic memory since I was a kid, this allows me to remember in detail, specifics what I have read about the subject manner.

-What I read about Robinson was that Tulsa ran a zone heavy scheme. Many have projected him to become a year 2 or 3 starter at the CB position, more of a project. The majority of development lies within his technique, poor footwork, tendency to play too handsy when he is beaten, etc. I remember MM state after the draft, they have options at safety, some players on the current roster along with Robinson who can play there if needed.

-A little out of the box thinking I drew my own conclusions: depth at corner, has experience is zone coverage, new scheme in which the safeties are used more like cornerbacks, etc. He does possess the physical traits to play either spot. Quickest way to see on the field experience might be more at safety. Didn't realize that Tulsa played as much man coverage as what you seen on tape.

-Clearly the CB position is more important then at safety. The CB market is highly more expensive. I still believe after this season, adding another db is going to be a high priority come draft time. Early on I get the sense Xavier Woods out of the 4 fa's is the player most likely to get an extension.

-I believe the coaches are going to try to get Robinson's feet wet in the defensive sub-packages this year, along with being a core special teamer. Will he see time on the outside or perhaps some work in the interior of the secondary, that's to be determined.

Maybe Tulsa played zone in years prior to 2019. I didn't go back and review those years.

Unfortunately about 90% of the effort by the draft media is expended on players projected in the top 2 rounds.

On average, media draft analysts put very little effort into reviewing projected mid/late round picks.
- It is worse for players that play their Senior years. The draft media tend to watch film of Juniors.
- They don't tend to re-watch most players during the Senior years if they already have notes on them from their Junior years.
- Very few top 50 players play their Senior years. If they did, then the analysts would re-watch those players.

I don't really blame the draft media because the big name prospects are what get clicks or viewers.

It has to be a daunting task to review almost all prospects the way Brugler does in his draft guides.

Robinson at CB
- He definitely needs a lot of work on technique.
- College coaches often don't spend much time coaching up their star players. They have to coach up their weak spots.
- Robinson compensated for technique issues by "out athlete-ing" opponents.
- His biggest issue was committing right/left too early and turning his hips at the 1st sign of the WR going inside or outside.
- Robinson did show a great athletic ability to flip his hips all the way back around when the WR faked him out initially without excessive delay, but in the NFL that would be a problem.
- Fans/media love to focus on speed, but the ability to flip their hips with minimal delay is a very under-discussed aspect of playing CB.
- We all think of speed when Deion's name is mentioned but it was his lateral agility / body control that set him apart from all ot

 

[Bullflop]

I fully expect Big Mike and his staff to experiment with him to see where he fits in best.
He may very well require a year or so to arrive at his most appropriate position.

There's no question that he's a highly gifted athlete. I believe he'd do well as a safety!

 

[Cowboyny]

- Fans/media love to focus on speed, but the ability to flip their hips with minimal delay is a very under-discussed aspect of playing CB.
- We all think of speed when Deion's name is mentioned but it was his lateral agility / body control that set him apart from all ot[/QUOTE]

-I think this is the reason why many media scouts loved C.J. Henderson from Florida. He was extremely smooth in his transitions and he had elite timed speed. We heard very little about his poor technique, lack of physicality and him being such a poor tackler. Sounds like Mo Claiborne to me, he is a truly boom/bust prospect.

 

[xwalker]

- Fans/media love to focus on speed, but the ability to flip their hips with minimal delay is a very under-discussed aspect of playing CB.
- We all think of speed when Deion's name is mentioned but it was his lateral agility / body control that set him apart from all ot

-I think this is the reason why many media scouts loved C.J. Henderson from Florida. He was extremely smooth in his transitions and he had elite timed speed. We heard very little about his poor technique, lack of physicality and him being such a poor tackler. Sounds like Mo Claiborne to me, he is a truly boom/bust prospect.[/QUOTE]

I was not a big fan of drafting Henderson. He was obviously the best athlete off all the CBs and might be great, but I could see him being a Claiborne type of underachiever.

 

[Kaiser]

I was not a big fan of drafting Henderson. He was obviously the best athlete off all the CBs and might be great, but I could see him being a Claiborne type of underachiever.

There is also way too much focus on what a draft pick can contribute in their first year. Guys like Henderson have a better shot at starting immediately but others will be better in time. Claiborne started as a rookie and was OK, it was probably his best season. Awuzie only started 6 games as a rookie but could very easily have a better career than Claiborne.

 

[quickccc]

It's about maximizes your roster for the current year. Awuzie, Diggs, Worley, Brown, Lewis, Canady are all ahead of him on the depth chart. Leaving Robinson at CB as a rookie would be like a red-shirt season, as he will be a special teams only player. You would think they want to get his feet wet in some capacity.

so if Robinson moves to safety, where he basically has to totally learn that position from scratch
as from i understood he was not a safety in college. And to make it that more complex, with Woods, Ha Ha already in front, and the odd talk of moving Awuzie to safety ...and along with Donovan Wilson already joining
his ex-college A&M coach (Marquis Lindquist)
So at safety this year, where on the depth chart will Robinson end up at ?

As a CB, where early on there's several candidates in the mix as possible starters and backup nickel guys.
i'm assuming the team plans to have Anthony Brown among the three CB roles, though admittedly i'm not a fan of Brown, and definitely don't want him starting outside. That leaves two others which may be opening competition camp and on.
- Will team keep Awuzie at CB ?
- Could rookie Diggs emerge as one of the immediate starters at one of the starting roles ?
- What about vet Darryl Worley who was signed on as a game experience stop gap role ?
- Could we possibly see one of the leftover CBs Awuzie or Jourdan Lewis traded away
before the season ?
- Unless Robinson can impress new coaching regime at some point this year in just his rookie year
to be promoted as the 4th CB and there is a trade that includes leftover CBs Lewis or Awuzie, i just
don't see where Robinson playing time comes from.