THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. – As Allen Robinson II embarks on his first season with the Rams, the wide receiver has two main focuses:
Mastering his craft, and maximizing his opportunity.
In Los Angeles, he has a huge opportunity to accomplish both thanks to his new environment. Here's a look behind Robinson's grind toward achieving those goals.
In Behind the Grind, Robinson said that although he didn't choose to be a receiver – "I kind of fell into it" – he did fall in love with the craft of the position.
"Being able to get open, winning at the line of scrimmage, catching touchdowns, it's something that once you get accustomed to doing it, it's hard to get away from," Robinson said.
This spring, Robinson joined an offense led by quarterback Matthew Stafford and triple-crown-winning, Super Bowl MVP wide receiver Cooper Kupp.
Kupp has been especially helpful with aiding Robinson in sharpening his skillset. Even when they were running outs "on air" – as in, not being guarded by defensive backs – Robinson in May said the two of them were always having detailed conversations talking through route concepts, different leverages of defensive backs, how different routes are ran based on different leverages and angles, and how to create separation.
"When you're playing next to guys like that, it's a tremendous help," Robinson said on May 15.
After Robinson signed with the Rams, general manager Les Snead pointed to Robinson's inside-outside versatility as one of the traits that made him appealing to the team. Snead and McVay both also cited Robinson's ability to run the entire route tree.
Meanwhile, offensive coordinator Liam Coen said during minicamp in June that Robinson can run a lot of the routes that Kupp can run.
"Coach McVay and the offense that he's put together and offense that these guys run, it's been a top offense in the league for a reason," Robinson said in May. "I truly believe that it'll bring the best out of me, and I'll be able to display all the elements of my game."
Already, Robinson is seeing that belief come to fruition.
"As a receiver, when you step into an offense, you want the entire playbook to be open," Robinson said in Behind the Grind. "I think Coach McVay does an incredible job of being able to utilize all guys' skillsets. It's not like you just do one thing, it's a combination of things and everything plays off each other."
Robinson believes he has the ability to occupy all three levels of the field.
"Moving the chains forward, if that's turning an 8-yard catch into 12 yards, turning seven yards into 10 yards," Robinson said. "It's just small things (I'm) trying to improve to make each and every catch a little bit better."
That troubleshooting process is a two-way street, and Robinson is an active participant. There's those conversations with Kupp, and then also being in constant communication with Stafford to ensure they're aligned on the way a route should be run.
"For me to be the best receiver that I can be, it's making sure that I'm on the same page with Matthew," Robinson said in Behind the Grind. "It's fun building that chemistry with the quarterback. It's like you go to a new school, everybody is getting to learn, 'What does he see? How does he feel about this route? How does he see the timing of this?' For me, (it's) trying to create constant communication and getting constant feedback from him so that I can make sure that I'm in the right place at the right time for where he wants me at."
Those daily deposits began during the spring and will pick back up when training camp starts next week. Doing so now will allow them to reap the rewards during the season.
"Being able run routes and talk concepts, and as we see certain blitzes or certain things he may hear, once the season comes, you're really able to get into a flow and get things rolling," Robinson said in Behind the Grind.
