FILM ROOM: Cam Robinson looked really, really good in his NFL debut

Leonard Fournette stole the headlines after the Jacksonville Jaguars defeated the New England Patriots in their preseason debut. He scored his first NFL touchdown with ease. He said playing in the SEC made the NFL an easier transition than he thought it would be. He’s the fourth overall draft pick, the team is on his back, and he didn’t show any signs of being intimidated.

But Cam Robinson played every bit as good in his NFL debut. Hell, he may have been even better.

The Jaguars kept Robinson in far longer than Fournette — six series and 39 plays to be exact. Keelan Cole and Corey Grant were scoring touchdowns before new head coach Doug Marrone decided to sit the rookie left tackle.

But we can all be glad he left him in as long as he did because we have plenty to look (and be encouraged by).

What stood out from Robinson’s play? How did he look in pass protection vs. run blocking? And what can we expect going forward?

Run blocking was his strength

This is from the first play of the game. Robinson’s NFL debut may have been against backups, but he still excelled.

The Jaguars called run plays twice as often as they let their quarterbacks throw the ball against the Patriots and without fail, Robinson was quick off the snap and powering through his block.

Pass protection was almost as good

And here’s a pass from the opening drive of the game. Watch Robinson’s footwork. He’s not content merely letting the defender come into his zone and then managing him. He shuffles back a little bit and then goes up to meet his defender, keeping him well out Bortles’ pocket.

Cam’s only miscue all night

This was Robinson’s only real mistake all night, but it was something Patriots defenders saw as a point of weakness for the rookie left tackle.

Whenever the defender would bull rush Robinson, he’d get knocked back and lose his footing a little bit. Most of the time he was able to anchor himself and the mistake’s impact would be minimized, but here the defender is able to get a pressure on Bortles during a third down in the red zone.

Recap

Robinson was very, very good in his NFL debut, but... it was against backups, mostly. His run blocking was superb and his pass protection, while including a problem or two, is still good enough to where I don’t worry about how Robinson will do going forward.

It’ll be very interesting to see what the Tampa Bay Buccaneers throw at Robinson. How long will they keep their first-string defensive line in the game? How will Robinson do against a much better group of defenders?