Before there was Walter Nolen III as a first-round pick, there was Darius Robinson. And Robinson, in Year 2, is looking to get to the levels he couldn’t in his injury-abbreviated rookie season.
The man mountain that is Robinson is all smiles these days. He is doing well. He had a single rep against left tackle Paris Johnson Jr. during Friday’s practice and it left him wanting to battle PJJ more. Defensive coordinator Nick Rallis said he likes where Robinson is with his run defense. The pass rush is a work in progress.
“He is getting a good grasp of his identity and what he wants to do as a rusher,” Rallis said. “That’s one of the things I have an eye on. … So much of being a rusher is being a technician.”
Robinson is that guy who is supposed to develop into the interior disruptor on the defensive line every team seeks these days. He has the tools. He needs to get there.
“Getting sacks and rushing, it’s hard,” Robinson said. “I want to make sure I have that confidence in my approach. This is the time to grow and get better.”
It would’ve been nice to have he and Nolen finding that out together, but Nolen remains on the PUP list with a calf injury — the same body part that kept Robinson out of 11 games a year ago. Robinson doesn’t want to compare the injuries, and there is optimism Nolen won’t be out nearly as long.
Rallis also is confident in Nolen’s learning curve once he returns to the field.
“That’s something we can gauge when the time comes,” Rallis said. “One of the things I am constantly reminding Walt, because he’s dying to be out there, is that you control those controllables.
“Whether we ease it back or put the pedal to the metal is something we can judge in that moment, but it’s not going to take long for him to get going.”
In the meantime, Robinson just wants to get back to the level he was at in training camp last year, before his calf derailed what looked to be a potentially good rookie season.
“This is Day 8 of camp, and I definitely think I am better this year on Day 8,” Robinson said, “but there is so much more ground I need to cover.”
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