When Bears coach Ben Johnson was the Lions’ offensive coordinator in 2023 and the team was searching for a running back, he filled his notebook while watching tape of Texas’ Bijan Robinson.
The Lions ultimately felt good enough about Jahmyr Gibbs and traded down from No. 6 to 12, which allowed the Falcons to draft Robinson at No. 8. He’s been a powerful weapon, and with the Bears facing him Sunday in Atlanta, Johnson’s pre-draft scouting report came rushing back.
“Oh, I loved him,” Johnson said. “I absolutely loved him.”
He swooned over the rare combination of size and speed, saying, “It takes a village to bottle him up, and even then he finds a way to squirm and get an extra three or four yards.” And don’t even get him started on what he brings as a pass catcher.
Robinson established himself as one of the NFL’s top talents with 1,400-plus yards rushing each of the last two seasons and is off to an even better start in this one.
He leads the league with 580 yards, doing so at a clip of 5.7 per carry, and has four touchdown runs. It’s early, but he’s on pace for one of the top 10 rushing seasons ever. He also has 18 catches for 152 yards and a touchdown, and last season the Falcons targeted him 103 times, second-most among running backs.
“You’ve just got to be more honest when it comes to run fits and coverage responsibilities,” Bears linebacker D’Marco Jackson said.
The Robinson problem landed on defensive coordinator Dennis Allen’s desk at an inconvenient time. Coming off a 31-7 loss to the Packers, the Bears will be without mainstay linebacker T.J. Edwards because of a hamstring injury.
The Bears actually defended the run well against the Packers, holding them to 70 yards, and stand ninth in the NFL in run defense. They haven’t faced anyone of Robinson’s caliber, though. The closest was the Vikings’ Aaron Jones, who ran for 105 yards on them.
At 5-foot-11, 215 pounds with 4.4 speed, Robinson has a variety of ways to beat the Bears on the ground. He’s just as likely to race to the outside to turn the corner on them as he is to bulldoze through the middle of the line for a few yards at a time.
“He’s got this nice balance between seeing a crease and turning on the jets,” he said. “Then when something doesn’t present itself right away, he’s got a lot of patience where he can kind of hide himself behind some of these guys and then find it.
“He’s in that MVP race for a reason.”
And lately, Robinson has benefitted from good quarterback play for the first time in his career. Michael Penix, the No. 8 overall pick in 2024, put up a 104.8 combined passer rating in blowout wins over the Packers and Saints and an overtime loss to the Ravens.
The Falcons haven’t had a winning season in nearly a decade and they’re off to a 2-3 start, but when the Bears warn that they’re better than they might seem on the surface, there’s no doubt they’re thinking of Robinson. He’s a legitimate difference maker, and it might not matter what else the Bears do right Sunday if they can’t manage him.