Don't Go Backward: James Robinson Lays Out Keys to Jaguars' Rushing Efficiency

Jacksonville hasn't had a negative run in the last two games. Why has that taken place, and why do the Jaguars need him to continue using it moving forward?

When it comes to running the football, it is important to stay out of negative situations. A one- or two-yard gain may not seem enticing, but they are significantly better than a loss of yards on any given carry. 

This is a lesson the Jacksonville Jaguars learned the hard way over the last several years. But in 2020, the Jaguars are learning the value of the flipside of the equation -- the value of a running back never going backward. 

Over the last two weeks, rookie running back James Robinson has not had a single carry lose yardage. During that span, he has rushed 27 times for 148 yards (5.48 yards per carry) and three touchdowns. He has kept Jacksonville's running game on track, keeping it from taking a step back thanks to his vision and instincts. 

“All the credit goes to those guys, the o-line, and even the quarterback. Even if the hole’s not there, you have to get a yard at least. That’s what I kind of think of if I don’t see anything is, ‘Don’t get tackled behind the line of scrimmage’, so I think it’s win-win even if you do get a yard," Robinson said during a media conference on Thursday.

With Leonard Fournette leading the rushing charge in the past, the Jaguars frequently had to deal with a feast or famine running game. Fournette could pop off long runs to reverse field position, but he also frequently had wasted runs due to poor vision. 

The best way to put it is that Fournette needed good blocking in front of him to have a chance. Meanwhile, Robinson has proven over three games that he can get yards even when he is put in disadvantegoussituations.

"I mean it might not seem like much but you’re not second-and-11 or second-and-12 or something like that. I think it’s a big thing to always move forward.”

Through three weeks, Robinson has rushed 43 times for 210 yards (4.9 yards per carry) and three touchdowns. He has helped Jacksonville's rushing attack go from a volume-based method to one based on efficiency. In fact, the Jaguars only rank 30th in rushing attempts as a team, which shows just how impressive Robinson has been in limited reps. 

Some volume stats for #Jaguars running game:

No. 30 in carries.
No. 19 in yards.
No. 14 in TDs.
No. 6 in yards per carry.@fboutsiders also has James Robinson with the fourth-best defense-adjusted Yards Above Replacement and fifth-best DVOA among RBs.

— John Shipley (@_John_Shipley) October 2, 2020

Robinson's ability to keep the Jaguars' offense moving no matter the situation also helped the undrafted rookie out of Illinois State some award hardware. On Thursday, it was announced Robinson had won NFL Offensive Rookie of the Month, the first Jaguars running back to do so since Fred Taylor.

“I like to go about it like I don’t want to be surprised by anything that I do," Robinson said Thursday. "For me, I want to go out there and play the same or even better every time and help out the team and play my role and doing my job and helping my teammates out.”