Brian Robinson injury update heading into Week 1

In what has to be one of the more unusual, albeit disturbing, offseason injuries, Washington Commaners rookie running back Brian Robinson was shot twice in the lower body, including his right knee, when he was assaulted in Washington DC last week. He underwent surgery, and the team says that he did not suffer any structural damage. Robinson was placed on the reserve/non-football injury list, which means he’ll miss the first four games of the season at least.

Fantasy football implications

Without Robinson for the foreseeable future, the Commanders will lean on their original rotation of Antonio Gibson and JD McKissic, the later serving in a third-down specialist role.

The decision to draft Robinson, who played his college ball at Alabama, in the third round this year caused a bit of stir given the team’s established pair atop the backfield depth chart. Still, the rookie was on his way to a significant role in the offense, having outplayed Gibson in training camp and the preseason.

Robinson is still a valuable player in keeper leagues, but he can probably be left on the waiver wire in standard fantasy leagues while he recovers.