Giants 2024 UFA Primer: DT A’Shawn Robinson

A'Shawn Robinson was one of the most underrated UFA signings made by the Giants last off-season.

A’Shawn Robinson, Defensive Tackle

Height: 6-foot-3
Weight: 320 lbs.
Age: 28
NFL Exp.: 8 Years
College: Alabama

Heading into the 2023 season, the New York Giants built themselves a nice duo on the defensive front in Leonard Williams and Dexter Lawrence II. The two were quality rushers in both passing and rushing regards, but once Williams was shipped off to Seattle for draft capital, it was up to players like A’Shawn Robinson to fill in the noticeable void and produce as the No. 2 guy.

An eighth-year pro out of Alabama, Robinson was signed by the Giants on April 24, 2023, to a one-year, $8 million contract to serve as a depth player behind Lawrence in the defensive tackle position. Before that, the 28-year-old was selected 46th overall in the 2016 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions where he spent three seasons before shifting to the Los Angeles Rams in 2020.

Coming out of high school, Robinson was a five-star recruit and was listed by numerous outlets as the nation’s best defensive tackle in 2012. He committed to the Crimson Tide the following year. He played for Nick Saban’s team for three seasons, becoming a Consensus All-American in 2015 and a CFP national champion in 2016.

Robinson’s time in Tuscaloosa drew attention early in his freshman season, as he racked up 38 tackles, 5.5 sacks, and eight tackles for loss to become one of the top freshmen players in the Alabama roster and the entire SEC. The next two years saw him follow that up with at least 46 tackles, 3.5 sacks, and 6.5 tackles for loss, and he increased the success of his pass rush to paste his name at the top of NFL team draft boards.

Robinson appeared in 58 games with the Lions and didn’t miss a contest until his third campaign in 2018. He recorded 172 total tackles, five sacks, three forced fumbles with recovery, one interception returned for a touchdown, and 16 pass deflections, including seven in his rookie year that led all defensive tackles in the league.

The Los Angeles tenure started slowly as Robinson was placed on the active/non-football injury list and missed the first half of the 2020 season. After that, the veteran defensive tackle saw 27 more starts with the Rams and made 109 more tackles, two sacks, and two forced fumbles. His 67 tackles in 2021 helped the franchise win Super Bowl LVI against the Cincinnati Bengals and remains his career-high to this date.

Robinson lost a chunk of his 2022 season with a torn meniscus suffered in November but rehabbed and was able to ink a new home with the Giants to fortify the defensive line with additional experienced run defenders.

2023 Recap

Before Leonard Williams was traded to the Seahawks before the deadline, Robinson was a key part of the Giants’ weekly production in the trenches.

In 17 games this fall, Robinson bounced back from his injury-shortened 2022 season, posting 62 tackles, two pass deflections, and 12.5 stuffs at the line of scrimmage. That stat line marked the second-best of his NFL career and the fourth time in eight years that he never missed a game.

Robinson’s production was seventh on the Giants leaderboards and edged out the rest of the defensive line, including the All-Pro run stuffer in Lawrence II. He had six games with at least five tackles and two straight with eight tackles in Weeks 14 and 15 against Green Bay and New Orleans.

Robinson’s stats also ranked fairly high among the league’s defensive tackles, making him a decent commodity for the Giants to consider retaining for 2024.

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WR Parris Campbell | QB Tyrod Taylor | CB Adoree Jackson | OLB Jihad Ward | Isaiah Simmons

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Why the Giants Should Re-sign Him

The Giants seemed to have something positive brewing within their defense in the second half of the season, and Robinson was a big part of that down the stretch.

Along with his lump sum of tackles this past season, Robinson played a crucial role in helping slow down the opposing run game and winning the battle at the line of scrimmage. He finished the 2023 season with 12.5 stuffs and a 7.7% missed tackle rate on his 62-tackle total which was his best number in the last four years and slightly above his career average.

Robinson was also very adept at making tackles in the backfield to create lost yardage for the opposing offense. Per PFF, the Fort Worth native posted 36 defensive stops that constituted a negative play for the offense, the best marker of his career for that stat. It was the second time in three years he’s made at least 31 “stops,” with the other instance coming in 2021 for the Rams.

The Giants defense ranked 30th in the NFL for team run-stop win rate and towards the bottom in several rushing categories at the end of the season. Yet, they began to some late promise behind guys like Robinson plugging up the interior. He couldn’t lift the entire unit alone, but his production was one of the factors that kept them from completely bottoming out during that time.

Robinson was less active in pressuring the quarterback than his stints in Detroit and Los Angeles, but he has the resume for doing it in the right situations. Even at his age nearing 30, the veteran shows he can still play at a quality level, and that is important for a Giants front that needs to maximize their talent without the presence of Leonard Williams.

Unless the Giants can find an even replacement on the market that is a better value for them, Robinson is one of three defensive tackles that can perform at a starting level. They should look to retain him for continuity in that position.

Why the Giants Shouldn’t Re-sign Him

The Giants have some younger talent, such as Jordon Riley, last year's seventh-round draft pick, waiting in the wings for a larger piece of the action. In 2023, the seventh-round pick was not very active till the second half of the season but showed some late promise as a run-stuffer backing up Robinson after the Williams trade.

The second option could be scouting the free agent market for another dominant veteran who could be the No. 2 guy alongside Dexter Lawrence II and worth the potential larger investment. Even if Robinson desires a more lucrative deal and the Giants don’t want to oblige, there are a slew of other too-tier defensive tackles to recruit at the right price. The key will be adding depth and experience if you don’t trust your younger pieces like Riley to fully take over and turn the tide of the team’s lowly run defense that allowed 4.7 yards per rush last season.

Keep or Pass?

While their pass rush has improved and saw strides late in the 2023 season, the Giants’ run-stopping unit has left much to be desired. Outside of Lawrence, the rest of the team’s interior nose tackles have not done enough to stifle opposing run games and set the tone at the line of scrimmage.

Robinson was one free agent signing that paid off with his ability to get past his blocker and stuff the rusher backward. He did that at the second-best rate of his career despite putting more tread on his tires in a defense that neared the bottom of the NFL in major rushing statistics.

The outside market is loaded with talent for the defensive tackle position. Still, it’s uncertain whether the Giants want to focus a heavy chunk of change on a second premier name when they have other needs to address across the roster. New York also has Jordan Riley and Rakeem Nunez-Roches to consider, albeit the former likely needs more time to develop, and the latter is a redirected free agent who could depart after a lackluster debut.

Forgetting the details surrounding the void years of his previous contract, the Giants would be wise to work with Robinson on a consecutive cheap deal that won’t put a significant dent in their pockets. If they want to snag a diamond in the rough after that and make him a depth piece, at least it offers them a chance to fix other sizeable issues with their cap space first.

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