What to make of Cardinals DL Darius Robinson’s NFL debut vs. Vikings

Much like Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr.’s unceremonious NFL debut, fellow first-rounder Darius Robinson’s didn’t quite live up to the hype.

At least on the surface.

Logging 22 defensive reps (42% of the available snaps) as part of a five-man rotation, Robinson registered just one quarterback pressure across the Cardinals’ 23-22 loss to the Minnesota Vikings.

“I’m a game changer and I didn’t change the game at all,” Darius Robinson told reporters postgame. “Just gotta get better, so excited about tomorrow’s opportunity.”

But peel back the curtain, and there’s much more to Robinson’s debut than what meets the eye.

He may not have been that “game changer” against the Vikings, but the rookie still had an impact in the trenches.

Just take a look at L.J. Collier’s first-quarter sack:

The Sack Sensei comes up big 🙌 pic.twitter.com/Dic9ItFryT

— Arizona Cardinals (@AZCardinals) December 1, 2024

While Collier gets credited with the sack, Robinson helped pave the way by chewing up two offensive linemen.

He also did a nice job plugging the hole and forcing Cam Akers back into the pile late in the fourth quarter. Instead of potentially picking up a first down on a chunk play, Minnesota settled for a five-yard gain.

“I thought he did good. I thought he was disruptive on one run,” head coach Jonathan Gannon told reporters postgame. “I thought he was disruptive. I thought he was getting back there a couple times.

“He’ll have some plays he’s got to clean up. It was good to get him out there. He’ll play better next week.”

At the end of the day, experience is everything for a rookie finding his bearings at the NFL level.

Garrett Williams is a great example of just that.

A lot like Robinson, Williams was forced to miss a good chunk of his rookie season due to injury — albeit one he suffered in college.

He quickly turned from potential depth piece to every-game starter as the reps piled up that rookie year.

Now, he’s arguably Arizona’s best cornerback option in Year 2.

Need a more recent example? How about Harrison?

After his debut, the No. 4 overall pick has turned things around behind 606 yards and a team-high seven touchdowns on 41 catches (78 targets).

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