James Robinson, Michael Carter's Jets Fantasy Outlook After Reported Jaguars Trade
The New York Jets acted quickly to replace Breece Hall, and it should be good news for fantasy football managers with James Robinson on their squad.
ESPN's Adam Schefter reported Monday that Hall suffered a torn ACL in Sunday's 16-9 win over the Denver Broncos. Hours later, NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported New York is getting Robinson for draft compensation.
Schefter later reported that the Jags acquired a sixth-round pick in 2023 that could upgrade to a fifth.
Week 3 was the high-water mark for Robinson so far. He carved the Los Angeles Chargers up for 100 yards and a score on 17 carries.
In his next three games, the third-year running back had 110 rushing yards on 30 carries. Just as concerning, he was on the field for fewer than 50 percent of the Jaguars' offensive snaps.
In Sunday's 23-17 loss to the New York Giants, Robinson failed to have a single carry, though head coach Doug Pederson said that was due to some minor injuries.
As Robinson's stock began to slide, Travis Etienne Jr.'s soared. Etienne generated 341 total yards and one touchdown in the Jags' last three games.
For Robinson, the trend almost certainly wasn't going to reverse as long as he remained in Jacksonville. Now, he's entering a backfield where Michael Carter is his toughest competition.
One could read the Jets' decision to select Hall in the second round of the 2022 draft as an indictment of Carter, who finished with 639 rushing yards and four touchdowns as a rookie in 2021. His performance in 2022 (228 yards, two touchdowns and 3.5 yards per carry) hasn't been much better.
New York head coach Robert Saleh and general manager Joe Douglas presumably wouldn't have moved for Robinson so quickly if they only saw him as the backup to Carter.
Granted, there are good reasons to remain cautiously optimistic about the 24-year-old.
He hasn't offered as much as a receiver (nine receptions, 46 yards, one touchdown) compared to Hall (19 receptions, 218 yards, one touchdown). Pederson's comments about Robinson's "lower body issues" are a little worrying as well after tearing his Achilles just 10 months ago.
From a fantasy perspective, Carter gets a slight edge over Robinson for now. He's a better pass-catcher (56 receptions for 476 yards in 21 games) with the added advantage of obviously knowing the offense.
Coming off the Jets' Week 10 bye, the dynamic might shift a bit since Robinson will have had more time to learn the playbook and find his fit.
If you have him on your roster, you might be looking at a few lean weeks. However, Robinson's long-term outlook is at least better now than it was before.
