2021 Chiefs Draft Prospect: Janarius Robinson

NAME: Janarius Robinson

POSITION: Defensive End

SCHOOL: Florida State

HEIGHT: 6’5”

WEIGHT: 266 pounds

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CAREER BACKGROUND

Janarius Robinson attended Bay High School in Panama City, Florida. While there, he starred in basketball along with football. His senior season was a highlight for both himself and Bay High School. Robinson collected seven sacks and earned USA Today All-USA Florida first team honors. Meanwhile, it was the first time that his high school reached the playoffs in a decade. ESPN ranked him as the 14th best defensive end in the country and the 22nd best player to come out of the state of Florida. The four-star recruit also ranked as the 103rd best prospect overall in his class by ESPN. He chose Florida State over other offers like Alabama, Auburn and Florida.

After joining the Seminoles, Robinson redshirted in 2016. He appeared in eight total games during the 2017 season, recording three tackles and a sack. 2018 is when this defender started to earn a starting role. Appearing in 12 games and making eight starts, Robinson recorded 27 tackles, four quarterback hurries, three tackles for loss and one pass breakup and sack apiece. One performance in particular stood out during that campaign. Robinson’s house was destroyed in Hurricane Michael. A week later, he recorded a career high six tackles, one sack and one quarterback hurry against Wake Forest. This led to him earning the Orange Bowl-FWAA Courage Award. Robinson proudly landed on the ACC honor roll during 2018. He also became a Seminole Scholar at the end of his time in college.

The last two seasons of his football career at Florida State were his best, in terms of production. Starting in 20 of 22 games played, Robinson registered 74 tackles, 16 tackles for loss, eight quarterback hurries, six sacks, three pass breakups, two forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries across 2019 and 2020.

SCOUTING REPORT

Positives

Length

Robinson has vines for arms. And he knows how to use the ample length he has to his advantage, to boot. Along with that length, Robinson times up his power moves and pulls opposing blockers to the side. He then uses a slingshot type of move to transition and fire away from blockers. Other times, Robinson waits subtly to use his longer arms and keeps them lower, but still active. The timing with his hands and arms in space was encouraging. Elsewhere, this defender can make stops from difficult angles, due to an excessive tackle radius. He can also be a nuisance by getting his arms into throwing lanes.

Run Defending

Robinson is a smart and quick processor when reading plays. He cycles through mesh points and traffic tactically. On the other hand, Robinson sets the edge firmly. It appears that he takes great pride in staying calm under pressure, and being able to react swiftly to run action in front of him. The leverage that he uses makes it extremely hard for blockers to displace him out of gaps and run fits. At the same time, he continues to work to the inside. Robinson could likely handle his own on early downs at the NFL level, because of his ability to squeeze down on short angles or scrape nimbly across the opponent’s face.

Versatility

Florida State appeared to have uncovered a majority of pass rush upside by moving Robinson into multiple alignments. His production was not always consistently high. But, he flashed quickness from time to time as a base 4-3 defensive end. The team also allowed him to move down to 3-technique or 4-technique. From there, the defender offered outside-in pass rush ability. Robinson looked comfortable when twisting or stunting around offensive linemen. His rawness is undeniable. However, Robinson has a lot of options from which to work with in his toolbox. Not hunkering him down to a singular role will likely suit him best.

Negatives

Pass Rush Counters

Once again, Robinson offers a lot to play with in his toolbox. There will need to be a considerable amount of development and refinement in his pass rush moves and counters, though. He can be slow to transfer or engage counters, especially if the opposition is stout with their hand technique. Spin moves and jump cuts are what he reverts to often times, because the separation is not being created with his hands or arms. If you want Robinson to win with strung out pass rush moves, then production will arise at an inconsistent rate. Allowing him to win with finesse and timing is a better course of action currently, until more refinement is instilled.

Explosiveness

The recovery athleticism and quickness in latter stages of plays is very noticeable. Yet, Robinson leaves you wanting more with his initial release out of his stance. His feet can become choppy instantaneously. Or, Robinson miss times his transfer from power to speed. The quickness is likely more effective than what we have seen so far. But, Robinson will have to work to start lower and fire out quicker out of his stance.

Body Control

This has more to do with plays where he is rushing the passer or trying to make a stop in space. Robinson lost his balance a fair amount, considering how strong he is with his hands and lower half. There is also an erratic nature with his tackle attempts. He will sometimes come in too high, allowing for the opponent to have a chance to break the tackle. Robinson can dive too early as well. Focusing on using a tighter strike zone and keeping his feet under him will need to improve. From a pass rush standpoint, Robinson can get out of his lane too often or get too far up the field.

Chiefs Fit

Janarius Robinson enters the NFL as a defensive end who is best as a run defender right now. The pass rush attempts may be manufactured in more of a situational role. Stringing together his many pass rush moves more often will lead to more blitz attempts in the long run. For the Kansas City Chiefs, he fits the mold of quicker, smarter and more powerful defenders that the team has leaned to in recent history. His ability to be moved around the line of scrimmage may also help his cause. With the addition of Jarran Reed to pair alongside Chris Jones inside, the Chiefs may want to become more multiple in the defensive front. Robinson could thrive by working from multiple roles or alignments.

Be on the lookout for our final FPC Chiefs draft prospect profiles throughout the next week. For more great sports and NFL content, stay tuned to Full Press Coverage.

– Braden Holecek is the Kansas City Chiefs managing editor for Full Press Coverage. He covers the NFL. Like and follow on Follow @ebearcat9//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js Follow @FPC_Chiefs//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js and Facebook.