James Robinson feels like Jags benched him after fumble vs. Rams

There were many takeaways from the 37-7 beatdown the Jacksonville Jaguars sustained from the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday, but the biggest question might be the suspicious handling of running back James Robinson.

Many felt that the Jags benched the second-year running back after he fumbled on Jacksonville’s first drive while being tackled by defensive tackle Aaron Donald. It’s understandable why that conclusion might be drawn, as Robinson didn’t see the field for 20 more plays while the team played Carlos Hyde for the next few series.

With Robinson being such a valuable piece to the offense, the handling of his snaps was the top topic of discussion in the postgame press conference with coach Urban Meyer. And while Meyer veered away from labeling Robinson’s situation a benching by saying the personnel decisions fall on his assistants, he did point to the heel and knee injuries that Robinson was dealing with as potential reasons for his struggles.

However, on Monday night, fans found out that Robinson agrees with them when it comes to viewing his time on the sideline as a benching. In an appearance on “Jags Report Live” with Brent Martineau and Dan Hicken, Robinson spoke on the matter while handling himself like a true professional.

“I would say so,” Robinson said when asked by Martineau if he thought he was benched. “Obviously, like I said last week, [fumbling the ball] can’t happen, but when it happens and you are out for that long, you got to feel that way. I was just waiting my turn to get back in the game, and it didn’t really come until the third quarter.”

When considering how valuable Robinson is to the team, this definitely will concern fans. That’s especially the case when considering that players voiced opinions alleging mistreatment by the previous regime.

In Monday’s interview between Robinson, Martineau, and Hicken, it was also revealed that Robinson tried to take the field to give Hyde a breather at one point, but the staff elected to keep him on the sideline.

“I think Carlos wanted a breather,” Robinson said when asked about the attempts he made to get back on the field that the reporters witnessed. “And then I was going to run on the field and they just said ‘no, no, no’ or ‘never mind.’ He just ended up staying in there, but I’m not sure what’s going on there.”

As crazy as that exchange was, Robinson also seem puzzled by the Jags’ decision to keep him in the game late (when it was out of reach), which made little sense when considering injuries.

“I knew the game was over by that point,” Robinson said “I probably should’ve been resting. I’m not sure what the point of [having me in late] was.”

As seen above, those statements came several hours after Meyer once again had no answers as to why a player of Robinson’s caliber would be on the field that late in the game while dealing with two injuries. It’s a clear indication that something fishy is going on in the Jags’ facility, and fans have every right to be concerned.