James Robinson (born August 9, 1998) is an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offense ...

. He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

Illinois State Redbirds The Illinois State Redbirds are the athletic teams that represent Illinois State University in Normal, Illinois. Teams play at the NCAA Division I level ( FCS in football). Most teams compete in the Missouri Valley Conference except football (M ...

and signed with the

Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team ...

as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

in 2020, and was traded to the

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team p ...

in 2022. In 2020, Robinson broke the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL) record for most scrimmage yards of any undrafted rookie.

Early life

Robinson was born and grew up in

Rockford, Illinois Rockford is a city in Winnebago County, Illinois, Winnebago and Ogle County, Illinois, Ogle counties in the U.S. state of Illinois. Located in far northern Illinois on the banks of the Rock River (Mississippi River tributary), Rock River, Rockfor ...

. He attended Rockford Lutheran High School, where he played basketball and

. As a senior, he rushed 2,461 yards and 44 touchdowns and was named Class 4A All-State. Robinson set IHSA career records with 9,045 rushing yards and 158 rushing touchdowns.

College career

Robinson played in nine games as a true freshman in 2016, missing three games due to a calf injury and finishing the season as the Redbirds third-leading rusher with 322 yards and two touchdowns on 63 carries. He became the team's starting running back as a sophomore and was named first-team All-

Missouri Valley Football Conference The Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC), formerly the Gateway Football Conference, is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference which operates in the Midwestern United States. It participates in the National Collegiate A ...

(MVFC) after rushing for 933 yards and 12 touchdowns. Robinson rushed for 1,290 yards and 12 touchdowns in his junior season and was again named first-team All-MVFC as well as a first-team

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

Phil Steele Phil Steele (c. 1960) is an American sportswriter and analyst who focuses exclusively on college and professional football. He is considered a "highly respected prognosticator" within the sports media. His company, Phil Steele Publications, pro ...

, a second-team All-American by

STATS Statistics (from German: ', "description of a state, a country") is the discipline that concerns the collection, organization, analysis, interpretation, and presentation of data. In applying statistics to a scientific, industrial, or social ...

and HERO Sports and to the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...

's third-team and was a finalist for the

Walter Payton Award The Walter Payton Award is awarded annually to the most outstanding offensive player in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (formerly Division I-AA) of college football as chosen by a nationwide panel of media and college sports ...

. As a senior, he rushed for 1,899 yards and 18 touchdowns and was a consensus first-team FCS All-American and a first-team All-Conference selection for the third straight season. Robinson finished his collegiate career with 4,444 rushing yards, second most in school history.

Professional career

Jacksonville Jaguars

Robinson signed with the

as an

on April 27, 2020, shortly after the conclusion of the

2020 NFL draft The 2020 NFL draft was the 85th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2020 NFL season. The first round was held on April 23, followed by the second and third rounds on April 24. The ...

. Robinson made the Jaguars' 53-man regular season roster out of training camp and was announced as the team's starting running back several days later. Robinson made his NFL debut in Week 1 of the 2020 season against the

Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. Since the 2008 India ...

. He recorded 16 carries for 62 rushing yards and a reception in which he leapt over Colts

safety Safety is the state of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings The word 'safety' entered the English language in the 1 ...

Khari Willis for 28 receiving yards in the 27–20 victory. Robinson became the fourth undrafted rookie running back to start week one since 1970, and set the record for most rushing yards for an undrafted rookie in Week 1. He became the first running back from Illinois State to start a game since

Aveion Cason Aveion Marquel Cason (born July 12, 1979) is an American former professional football running back and kick returner in the National Football League (NFL) for the St. Louis Rams, Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys. He also was a member of the Flo ...

in 2006. A week later, on September 20, 2020, Robinson tallied 120 all-purpose yards and scored his first career touchdown in a 33–30 loss to the

Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. They play the ...

. In Week 3, against the

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. The Dolphins compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team ...

on ''

Thursday Night Football ''Thursday Night Football'' (often abbreviated as ''TNF'') is the branding used for broadcasts of National Football League (NFL) games that broadcast primarily on Thursday nights. Most of the games kick off at 8:15 Eastern Time (8:20 prior to ...

'', he had 129 scrimmage yards and two rushing touchdowns in the 31–13 loss. On October 1, 2020, Robinson was named the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Month for his performance in September. In Week 7 against the

Los Angeles Chargers The Los Angeles Chargers are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Chargers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC W ...

, he had 22 carries for 119 rushing yards and one rushing touchdown to go along with four receptions for 18 receiving yards and one receiving touchdown in the 39–29 loss. In Week 10, against the

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They ar ...

, he had 23 carries for 109 rushing yards in the 24–20 loss. In Week 12, against the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. The Browns compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team is named after ...

, he had 22 carries for 128 rushing yards and one rushing touchdown to go along with five receptions for 31 receiving yards in the 27–25 loss. Robinson is the fourth undrafted player in NFL history to rush for 1,000 yards in his rookie season, following

Dominic Rhodes Dominic Dondrell Rhodes (born January 17, 1979) is an American former professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Midwestern State Mustangs and was signed by the ...

, LeGarrette Blount, and

Phillip Lindsay Phillip Lindsay (born July 24, 1994) is an American former professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL). He was born in Denver, Colorado, grew up in Aurora, Colorado, and attended South High School ...

. He also finished with the record for most scrimmage yards of any rookie free agent in NFL history. He was named to the PFWA All-Rookie Team. Robinson was ranked 100th on the

NFL Top 100 Players of 2021 The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The N ...

list. Against the

in Week 16 of the 2021 season, Robinson tore his

Achilles tendon The Achilles tendon or heel cord, also known as the calcaneal tendon, is a tendon at the back of the lower leg, and is the thickest in the human body. It serves to attach the plantaris, gastrocnemius (calf) and soleus muscles to the calcane ...

in the first quarter, ending his season. He finished the season with 767 rushing yards and eight touchdowns through 14 games.

New York Jets

On October 25, 2022, Robinson was traded to the Jets in exchange for a conditional sixth-round pick following an ACL injury to

Breece Hall Breece Hall (born May 31, 2001) is an American professional American football, football running back for the New York Jets of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Iowa State Cyclones football, Iowa State Cyclone ...

that cut his 2022 season short. It came as 2021 first-round pick

Travis Etienne Travis Etienne Jr. (born January 26, 1999) is an American professional football running back for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Clemson Tigers and was selected by the Jaguars in ...

replaced him as the starter in Jacksonville. Robinson only played in four games the rest of the season for the Jets. On the 2022 season, Robinson had 110 carries for 425 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns to go along with 11 receptions for 51 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns.

New England Patriots

On March 17, 2023, Robinson signed a two-year, $8 million contract with the

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. The Patriots compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The Pa ...

. He was considered a possible short-yardage replacement for the departing

Damien Harris Damien Harris (born February 11, 1997) is an American former professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Alabama Crimson Tide, where he was a two-time national ...

, who had signed with the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East div ...

. However, on June 12, Robinson was released by the Patriots. It was later reported that the team had concerns about his health and the deal had contingencies should Robinson fail a physical.

New York Giants

On July 21, 2023, Robinson signed with the

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...

. He was released on August 27, 2023.

Green Bay Packers

On October 17, 2023, the

signed Robinson to their

practice squad In gridiron football, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. They serve as extra players during the team's practices, often as part of the scou ...

. He was released on November 6. He was signed to the practice squad again on November 20, and signed to the active roster two days later. He was released on November 27. He was re-signed to the practice squad on November 29, 2023. He was released again on December 5, 2023.

New Orleans Saints

On December 13, 2023, the

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. Since 1975, the team ...

signed Robinson to their practice squad. Following the end of the 2023 regular season, the Saints signed him to a reserve/future contract on January 8, 2024. On August 27, 2024, the Saints released Robinson.

NFL career statistics

Regular season

References

External links

Illinois State Redbirds bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Robinson, James 1998 births Living people Players of American football from Rockford, Illinois American football running backs Illinois State Redbirds football players Jacksonville Jaguars players New England Patriots players New York Giants players New York Jets players Green Bay Packers players New Orleans Saints players