Marcus Robinson: Big hands on deck

Published August 09, 2006 12:59 am

Mention Vikings wide receiver Marcus Robinson and a lot of fans will immediately remember last year’s game against the Cleveland Browns.

[size=18px]Big hands on deck[/size]
Robinson believes bigger receivers like himself are well-suited for Vikings’ West Coast offense

By Jim Rueda
The Free Press

MANKATO —
Mention Vikings wide receiver Marcus Robinson and a lot of fans will immediately remember last year’s game against the Cleveland Browns.

Robinson had just three receptions in that game but all three went for touchdowns as he used his 6-foot-3, 215-pound frame to outleap defenders in the end zone. The end zone leap may not be a staple of the West Coast offense being installed by head coach Brad Childress and his coaching staff, but Robinson believes it may eventually find its way into the playbook.

“I think you’ll see it again,” he said between practices this week. “Right now the coaches are bringing their thing into it, trying to get us to buy into the offensive scheme.

“As things start to progress that’s when you’re able to verbalize and talk and you go back and forth with ideas for plays. Right now we’re just trying to establish a foundation for the offense.”

New Vikings offensive coordinator Darrell Bevel says there’s plenty of room in the offense for taller guys like Marcus Robinson.

“This offense needs those big wide receivers,” he said. “Koren (Robinson) is a big guy, Travis (Taylor) is a big guy, Marcus (Robinson) is a big guy.

“We have big guys that still have those physical sets. They can run; they can get out of breaks; the bigger, physical receiver can really help the offense.”

Marcus Robinson goes one step further. He says big receivers are actually well-suited to the short-passing style of the West Coast attack.

“Look at Terrell Owens, look at Michael Westbrook when he was with the Redskins, they use a lot of big bodies to run slants and drive things like that,” he said. “It’s not always that short, quick guy. Jerry Rice was a tall guy, you have Rod Smith who ran it in Denver a little bit. The West Coast offense fits both types of receivers.”

Robinson burst onto the NFL scene with the Chicago Bears in his sophomore season of 1999. That year he had career highs in receptions (84), yards (1,400), yards per reception (16.7) and touchdowns (9).

He played well again in 2000 and then saw his career derailed by a knee injury which required season-ending surgery in 2001. He began to regain his stature as one of the more versatile and dependable receivers in the league with Baltimore in 2003 (31 receptions, 451 yards, 6 TDs) before signing with the Vikings as a free agent prior to the 2004 campaign.

Since then he has been a reliable spot starter, serving mostly as the team’s No. 2 or 4 wideout. Last year he led Minnesota in receiving average (16.6 ypr) and receiving touchdowns (5).

“Marcus is doing a nice job (in this offense),” Bevell said. “We all know we can just throw one up to him outside and he can catch it but, in this camp, he’s shown an ability to get in and out of cuts and to set defensive backs up to get himself open. I think that’s been impressive.”

Robinson may be doing well but it hasn’t been that easy. Absorbing the new offense takes hard work and diligence.

“It’s a lot to learn,” he said. “There are different plays, different formations for difference receivers, different motions. The concept of the routes are still the same, there are just a lot of different variations.”

Big hands on deck

What's better for him?
Big hands on deck or hands on big deck?