‘I’ll be good next week’: Running back Bijan Robinson explains his absence in Falcons win against Buccaneers
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Bijan Robinson said he was dealing with a headache that didn’t lessen enough for him to comfortably play Sunday.
TAMPA, Fla. — Curiosity over Bijan Robinson’s whereabouts built the more Sunday’s game progressed and the less his number was seen.
The Atlanta Falcons running back didn’t have a single touch in the first half of the Week 7 game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He finished with one carry, late in the fourth quarter, for 3 yards by the time the Falcons’ 16-13 win over the Buccaneers was finalized.
The FOX broadcast reported at halftime Robinson was not feeling well, and the player himself confirmed he was dealing with a consistent headache in the locker room at Raymond James Stadium afterward.
“It (started) last night, I was feeling weird,” Robinson said. “I woke up, just completely out of it. I tried to take medicine so I could be good for the game. But my head was hurting. Bad. I don’t know what was going on. I tried to go in pregame, but then coach (Arthur) Smith said, ‘We’ll be all right. Let’s get you right.'”
Robinson was not on any of Atlanta’s injury reports leading up to Sunday’s action.
Official snap counts will come out Monday. In the first six games this season, Robinson played at least 33 snaps (Week 1 win over Carolina Panthers) or at least 61% of the snaps (Week 5 win over the Houston Texans). His Week 7 numbers won’t be close to either of those marks.
“I don’t care what I’m going through, I’m going to push through,” Robinson said. “But at the same time, I know it’s a long season. I know that Coach Smith has the best interest at heart for me. Knowing when he has a plan and we have a plan, I’m going to go with it and not bother with it. I’ll be good next week.”
The Falcons play the Tennessee Titans next Sunday at Nissan Stadium.
Technically, Robinson has still played in every NFL game of his young career so far. That detail matters to Robinson. He can easily recall the very few games he has ever missed: two at Texas and two in high school.
There was never any doubt Robinson was going to dress for Sunday’s game. The plan was for him to go through warm-ups to test the waters in hopes of his pain alleviating. It never fully did.
“He wasn’t feeling like himself,” Smith said. “He played, but we weren’t going to overdo it. We were being cautious. When you have other guys that can go, we’re a team. So, we’ll just have to continue monitor him tonight and tomorrow.”
Running backs Tyler Allgeier and Cordarrelle Patterson carried the run game for the Falcons. Allgeier led the way with 21 carries for 59 yards. Patterson had 10 carries for 56 yards.
Otherwise, quarterback Desmond Ridder was the only other Atlanta representative to record any rushing stats, and he had six carries for 38 yards and a touchdown. He scored on a 2-yard run in the first quarter.
Robinson could be seen high-fiving everyone as they returned to the sideline throughout all four quarters.
“Trying to be a good teammate,” Robinson said. “Obviously I was pushing through it. But I was always trying make sure the guys – Ty, CP; the offense, the defense – were always locked in. That was my main goal. I’m super glad for how we won the game.”
