Eagles feel they have answer to slow down Falcons RB Bijan Robinson: ‘It’s going to be a long day’ if we don’t

PHILADELPHIA — Saquon Barkley just needed to watch a few minutes of highlights to know Bijan Robinson was going to be special. Robinson’s immediate success didn’t surprise Barkley in the slightest. 

“He’s one of my favorite backs to watch,” Barkley said. “I remember I was watching his highlight tape on YouTube just this offseason. Big fan of his game, even since college. Future is bright for him.”

Of all the weapons the new-look Atlanta Falcons offense has to throw at the Philadelphia Eagles defense, Robinson is still the one to stop. Robinson had a strong rookie season despite the mishandling of the No. 8 overall pick by former head coach Arthur Smith. He finished with 214 carries for 976 yards and four touchdowns (4.6 yards per carry) while also racking up 58 receptions for 487 yards and four touchdowns. He finished with a franchise-record 1,463 yards from scrimmage for a rookie. 

Robinson only needed one season to gain respect from opposing defenses. 

“He can move. He’s fast, a home-run hitter, too, somebody who is trying to punish you because he’s a big guy,” Eagles defensive end Brandon Graham said. “We have to get numbers to the ball with this type of back. He didn’t go top 10 for no reason, so we have to make sure everything revolves around him. 

“If we get him started, it’s going to be a long day. If we don’t, we allow Kirk Cousins to beat us. No team wants to get run on any way, so when you have a premier back like that you have to make sure you play team D [defense].”

Robinson had 111 yards from scrimmage in Week 1 for Atlanta, the lone bright spot on offense in an 18-10 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. He finished with 18 rushes for 68 yards and five catches for 43 yards.  

How do the Eagles contain a player with Robinson’s Superman ability? Jalen Carter might have the kryptonite. 

“You know, on the D-line, you just gotta stay on your blocks,” Carter said. “There are certain things that their O-line wants the D-linemen to do, where if it’s like a sweep or something, they want us to turn our shoulders and start running. But our goal is to try to stay square on that. 

“It’s little details that we need to do. If we do it to our max, it will stop the run.”

The Eagles gave up 163 rushing yards in the season-opening win over the Packers, forcing head coach Nick Sirianni to emphasize tackling in the practices leading up to the Monday night showdown. Robinson is their biggest test in the early portion of the season. 

“Hopefully he’s not special on Monday,” Barkley said with a laugh. “Not even close to that.”