The Rams’ receiver group is a collection of players who share very similar traits. Les Snead even called Van Jefferson a combination of Robert Woods and Cooper Kupp when the Rams drafted him in 2020.
All three do everything very well, from blocking to catching short passes to eluding tackles after the catch, but none of them are particularly great at winning contested catches and 50-50 balls. They aren’t the types of receivers who elevate over a defender to come down with difficult grabs in tight coverage. That’s no disrespect to any of them, but they don’t play the same style that Allen Robinson does.
And that’s why Robinson is such a great fit with the Rams. He agreed to a three-year deal with Los Angeles and immediately upgrades the team’s receiving corps. At 6-foot-3, he brings size and physicality that the Rams don’t currently have at the position.
And like Odell Beckham Jr., he can go up and pull down fades and jump balls over defenders. Matthew Stafford had receivers who could do that in Detroit – Calvin Johnson, Kenny Golladay, Marvin Jones Jr. – and now he has one in L.A. with Robinson.
Just look at some of these contested catches he’s made in the NFL.
There's no such thing as a 50/50 ball with @AllenRobinson.@RamsNFL | #RamsHouse pic.twitter.com/UrAGLVCopm
— NFL (@NFL) March 17, 2022
The numbers are there to back it up, too. According to Pro Football Focus, Robinson has 71 contested catches since 2018. That’s the most of any receiver in the NFL during that span, showing how regularly he makes plays for his quarterbacks – who have all been pretty inaccurate throughout his career.
Allen Robinson: 71 contested catches since 2018
Most among WRs 💪 pic.twitter.com/gQfLHrXcuf
— PFF (@PFF) January 20, 2022
While Kupp and Woods win by generating separation, Robinson wins by making contested catches. Last season, he had the third-lowest average separation in the NFL, according to Next Gen Stats.
That shouldn’t scare Stafford or the Rams because he still manages to come down with receptions despite having defenders draped all over him.
That ability is unique to the Rams’ receivers, and will be a difference-maker next season.
