Don’t cement a player’s future based on what they do in their rookie year. Players grow, and in some cases, like with Raiders CB Amik Robertson, players blossom.
You can’t expect every player you draft to come into the NFL and start dominating against veterans from day one. Oftentimes, a team will draft a player they label as a “project”; best described as a player the team doesn’t think is ready to contribute yet, but has high hopes down the line based on their potential.
That’s the best way to describe Amik Robertson and his journey with the Las Vegas Raiders.
The 2020 season brought a new meaning to Raider football. Gone were the days when the Silver and Black called a field with the dirt from a baseball infield their home as a new era was ushered in, completed by a two billion dollar stadium.
Vegas, baby.
Now officially relocated, it was time to start selecting those who would make up the first draft class of Las Vegas Raiders’ history. And, in the fourth round of the 2020 NFL Draft, the Raiders turned in their pick to grab cornerback Amik Robertson.
Things didn’t start out too well for Robertson. Actually, the beginning of his career was downright painful to watch. During his rookie season, the Louisiana Tech alum allowed 66.7% of passes his way to be caught, logging an opposing quarterback rating of 149.3 – just nine numbers away from a perfect QB rating of 158.3.
Against the run, Robertson also struggled, earning a run defense grade of 42.4 via Pro Football Focus. To put this grade into perspective, his run defense grade was shockingly lower than his coverage grade, despite allowing an opposing quarterback rating nine shy of perfect.
Things weren’t much better in year two; it might’ve been worse than his rookie season.
Robertson allowed a career-high 72.2 completion percentage with a QB rating of 135.4. His coverage grade sank to a lowly 39.9, which still bested his run defense grade of 36.2 – the 39th-lowest grade on running plays out of all 803 qualifying defenders.
That was then – now, the 24-year-old is playing the type of football the Raiders knew he could when they drafted him.
Raiders CB Amik Robertson deserves flowers for fantastic career turnaround
The first five weeks of Roberton’s ’22 campaign welcomed more struggles, although he did record his first career interception in a Week 2 loss against Arizona. The third-year defensive back gave up a completion percentage of 86.7% and logged a passer rating of 130.6. Against the run, Robertson had earned a grade of 59.4, missing a team-high 33.3% of tackles.
Then, over the Raiders’ bye in Week 6, it all started to click for the former fourth-rounder.
Since returning from the bye in Week 7, Robertson has put together an incredible resume. Not only has his allowed QB rating dropped to 98.9, but only 45.5% of passes his way are being completed – the lowest percentage allowed on the entire team.
His presence against the run has been night and day as well.
Robertson has posted a grade of 82.7 when defending the run, which is the second-highest on the team since Week 7, and the 23rd-highest across the entire NFL. Perhaps more impressively, he’s turned a 33.3% missed tackle rate on running plays into a perfect 0%.
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Raider Nation is beginning to see the true potential of Amik Robertson as he continues piecing together fantastic outings. Credit to the young defensive back for his hard work in such a turnaround, and cheers to more success in the future.