Corey Robinson Returned At Guard In 2017, How’d He Fair Against Graham Glasgow At The Position?
Get ready for an interesting ride. Graham Glasgow has been listed as the weak-link of the offensive line going into the 2017 season as the Lions signed veteran guard T.J. Lang and offensive tackle Rick Wagner. Taylor Decker came off an impressive rookie year, and Travis Swanson seemed to have rebounded with a solid 2016 season.
While T.J. Lang went down with an injury and was forced to miss the Browns game, offensive tackle Corey Robinson was pushed in at the guard spot and did well. Fans are suggesting Robinson could possibly replace Glasgow at left guard, but is that possible?
Here I am going to be looking at how Robinson really did against the Browns, and if he could be a possible replacement for Glasgow next season. This is only the beginning of this three-part article series, as I will come back and look at two different angles at the end of the season.
How’d Corey Robinson Really Do Against Cleveland?
During the first quarter, Robinson showed signs of adjusting to the new position. On the second play of the game, Emmanuel Ogbah was able to take down Ameer Abdullah behind the line of scrimmage because Corey Robinson focused on the double team of Danny Shelton, while Rick Wagner was focused on linebacker Jamie Collins, leaving Ogbah in the clear for the tackle for loss.
Later in the second quarter, Corey Robinson messed up but also did his job during the Ameer Abdullah rushing touchdown. Glasgow and Swanson both let defensive tackle Caleb Brantley go, and he wasn’t expecting it so he fell forward to the ground. Corey Robinson was supposed to pull and block him by going low, but with Brantley falling, he was out of the play already and Robinson was already falling, but while he missed Brantley, he was able to stop Myles Garrett by hitting his leg and saving the play as it seemed like Garrett would have made the tackle if Robinson wasn’t there.
Going into the third quarter, on 2nd and 9 Stafford is able to complete a pass to Marvin Jones for a gain of 22, but it almost was another batted down pass as Robinson’s hands were batted down by Trevon Coley, and Stafford was able to get the pass off before Coley put his hands up for the deflection.
Almost the same thing would happen later in the third as Brantley was able to throw Robinson’s hands down, break free and put his hands up, but luckily Stafford was able to throw it Kenny Golladay for his 50 yard gain.
Overall, Robinson did well at the guard position. He had some struggles, but playing the position for the first time, he did a good job. Robinson was able to pull when needed, held his own for a majority of the one-on-one battles, did his best to create lanes for the running backs and protecting Stafford.
Could Robinson Replace Glasgow?
One game of film can’t override the multiple that Glasgow has given to the Detroit Lions. Glasgow has played guard and center in college at Michigan and has had played both positions in the NFL. Glasgow has improved this season, doing better than many expected and something I will touch base on in the future of this series.
This was Robinson’s first ever game at the guard position, and while he did well, it gives Detroit another player who can fill in for an injured offensive tackle or guard. Versatility is a big thing in the NFL and players who are more expandable are more likely to have a job than others.
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