A Cut Above: What separates Bijan Robinson from everyone else

"You can get some yards because of blocking and scheme, but making defenders miss is all on you," Hall of Fame running back Edgerrin James told atlantafalcons.com. "Yards after contact or when a defender is in position to make a play come from the player. In today's NFL, that's one of the truest signs of a special back."

James is one of the few people able to appreciate what Robinson does at an innate level. With a league-best 1,553 rushing yards and 17 total touchdowns as a rookie in 1999, James exploded onto the NFL scene and went on to become one of the defining players of the first decade of the 21st century. He finished his career with 12,246 rushing yards, which stand as the 14th-most in the league's history.

A key part of a Colts offense that also included Peyton Manning, Marvin Harrison, Reggie Wayne and Dallas Clark, James helped revolutionize the game of football in the early 2000s. He was a physically imposing runner with deceptively smooth feet, capable of shaking defenders in a phone booth before taking off to the house. James was also one of the first backs who impacted the game in all phases, including as a receiver.

He shares stylistic similarities with Robinson, but James thinks the Falcons' All-Pro is carving out his own place in the running back pantheon.

"I see Marshall Faulk and some LaDainian Tomlinson in him, but the best players create their own lane," James said. "Bijan looks like Bijan. That's what makes him special."

As a prospect coming out of the University of Texas, Robinson earned the coveted "generational" label given to the very best players. Debates about the value of the running back position in the modern NFL are frequent, but nobody questioned Robinson's ability to transcend that notion. And that's exactly what he's done.

Robinson led the NFL with 2,298 scrimmage yards, which is the 12th-highest single-season total in league history. James is just ahead of him on that list for his spectacular 2000 season in which he gained 2,303 scrimmage yards.

Way up at No. 4, however, is a player who redefined what a running back could be and helped pave the way for versatile players like Robinson.

In 2005, Tiki Barber put together what was at the time the second-best offensive season in NFL history. He gained 2,390 scrimmage yards and scored 11 touchdowns while leading the New York Giants to an 11-5 record and NFC East title. He was named a first-team All-Pro and finished fourth in the MVP voting that season.

Barber set himself apart as a dynamic player who could affect the game as both a runner and a receiver during his career from 1997-2006. When he retired, Barber had gained 10,449 rushing yards and 5,183 receiving yards, joining Marshall Faulk and Marcus Allen as one of only three players to account for more than 10,000 rushing yards and 5,000 receiving yards.

"That consistency to be a 10,000, 5,000 guy, especially as the game has evolved and they utilize running backs as a fifth or sixth receiving option, that's where he can really make the difference," Barber told atlantafalcons.com. "Because once you become dynamic in both ways and they don't know where to expect you, then you become even more valuable."

Since entering the league, Robinson has cross-trained to develop the skill set to impact the game as both a runner and receiver. He views that as essential to reaffirming the importance of the running back position in the NFL.

In recent offseasons, Robinson has trained with Christian McCaffrey, who has long been the standard-bearer for versatility at the running back position and is well on his way to joining that exclusive 10,000/5,000 club. Through nine seasons, McCaffrey already has 5,390 receiving yards and 7,589 rushing yards.

That is the kind of duality Robinson brings to Atlanta and why the Falcons made him the highest-paid running back in NFL history at the time when they signed him to a three-year contract extension this offseason.

"Running the football is obviously fun. That's what we do—you run the football, make people look silly, get in the end zone," Robinson said. "That's always how you want to do it as a running back. But in order to be the dominant threat as a football player, your coach has to trust you to line up at receiver and do the same thing.

"When you go out to receiver and the defense sees you go out there, then they're like, 'What do we do? What's the matchup? How do we stop this?' When it gets to that point, when you can go to that position and corners are on you—and that's just immense respect from the other team—then you're becoming an all-around guy … not just as a running back but as a true dominant force."

While everyone agreed about Robinson's special talent as a draft prospect, there was debate, at least among the Atlanta fan base and media, about whether the Falcons needed to draft a running back in 2023. Tyler Allgeier was fresh off breaking the franchise's rookie rushing record while powering the league's third-best rushing attack in 2022.

Despite Allgeier's impressive season, the Falcons understood Robinson could transcend the typical running back's role. Atlanta's front office operated with a best-player-available approach, and it was clear Robinson was exactly that because of his immense upside as a receiver.

"They're splitting him out at receiver, five-wide sets; they'll have him playing in the slot. They're moving around everywhere, just allowing him to showcase his full ability," Jacksonville Jaguars legend Fred Taylor told atlantafalcons.com. "A lot of people question why Atlanta would take a back so high. But this is a once-in-a-lifetime type talent."

Taylor understands what it's like to be viewed as a generational talent. During his four-year career at the University of Florida, Taylor accumulated 3,792 yards, scored 31 touchdowns and won a national championship in 1996. That was enough to put him in the first-round conversation for the 1998 NFL Draft.

Then, Taylor was clocked running the 40-yard dash at Florida's pro day in 4.29 seconds. He didn't just run the 40-yard dash faster than Devone Achane; he did so at 6-foot-1 and weighing 228 pounds. That combination of size, speed and productivity vaulted him into a different category, and the Jaguars selected Taylor ninth overall—one spot behind Robinson's ultimate draft slot.

After 13 seasons in the NFL, Taylor hung up his cleats with 14,079 scrimmage yards, including 11,695 rushing yards. His unique combination of physical gifts helped Taylor compile the 15th-most rushing yards in league history at the time of his retirement in 2010. In Robinson, however, Taylor sees a trait he considers among the rarest gifts for a back.

"I think it's his balance," Taylor said. "Obviously he has great vision, but his balance is what allows him to be able to run full speed while being able to make a cut move on the defender. He doesn't lose stride or pace. And not many guys have that. And that's something that you cannot absolutely under any circumstances teach."

On nearly every carry, Robinson displays some combination of anticipatory vision, balance and propulsive jukes. Few plays, however, illustrate the point Taylor makes better than Robinson's first-down carry with 2:11 remaining in the first quarter of Atlanta's win against the Buffalo Bills in Week 6 of the 2025 season.

Robinson picked up 22 yards on the play by using each quality to the highest level.

The combination of Buffalo linebacker Terrel Bernard leaping on his back and safety Taylor Rapp hitting him from a blind angle was enough to bring Robinson down at the 9-yard line. According to Next Gen Stats, Robinson forced three missed tackles on the play—the most on a single play in his career.

"He stops on a dime," Taylor said. "His anticipation IQ is way, way, way above average. It's right there with the likes of Barry Sanders, LaDainian Tomlinson, etcetera."

Barber had a different comparison in mind for Robinson's silky-smooth ability to sidestep and strike.

"He has the same balance as Walter Payton," he said. "He has the same ability to make you miss as Walter Payton and run through tackles. Walter was physical. For a small running back, he would put his head through you and then keep going and truck you."

Since he entered the league in 2023, no player in the NFL has made more defenders miss than Robinson. According to Next Gen Stats, he has forced 243 missed tackles on 805 carries. Just behind him on that list is Derrick Henry, who has forced 231 missed tackles on 912 carries.

Henry, who is well on his way towards wearing a gold jacket one day, has largely been considered the most difficult player to bring down for much of the last decade. The 6-foot-2, 252-pound Henry is a human battering ram with breakaway speed and can tear right through the heart of a defense.

That Robinson can top a player with such overwhelming physicality in a stat like broken tackles is perhaps the clearest indicator of the singularity of his game.

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