Great Read on Greg Robinson's Technique

[Schmitzer]

From LBOnlinePerformance

So many flaws but seem easily corrected. Points to sorrowful lack of coaching. I heard that GR himself retweeted it.

 

[12intheBox]

View: https://twitter.com/OLineWorld65/status/673975148446269440


He did retweet it. Which I think I like. I hope that he has the offseason of a lifetime - hires a technique coach and goes balls to the wall to make himself a pro.

 

[OldSchool]

Great read, hire this guy and let Boudreaux go.

 

[CoachO]

If Robinson actually took the time to read this before retweeting it..... It would be considered progress in and of itself. Considering he doesn't spend much time reading his playbook.

 

[jjab360]

His technique is just a complete mess, but there's still a lot of potential there imo

 

[Ballhawk]

Coach,
You were there during TC. Were the coaches working with GRob to get him to improve or did they just lay out what to do and then expect the players to learn on their own?

 

[CoachO]

Coach,
You were there during TC. Were the coaches working with GRob to get him to improve or did they just lay out what to do and then expect the players to learn on their own?

For all the flack Boudreau gets in this forum, there isn't a coach on this team who is more detail oriented. He is constantly coaching these guys on technique. Be it hand placement, footwork or just correcting "who" they are supposed to block on any given play. So yes, they coach these guys on technique and fundamentals constantly.

From what I've been told, the issue is work ethic. Greg Robinson has never had to learn how to be better because he has always been so physically better than those he lined up agaist, that the "mental side" of his game was unnecessary. He played in a system at auburn that had four running plays and one protection in pass pro.

Getting him in the film room and actually retaining the things they ask of him have been the biggest challenges.

I was told just the other day that there were at least three separate instances in the Cardinals game where he failed to recognize a blitz that came from the outside. After it was specifically made a point of emphasis during the week in both the film room and on the practice field. All three plays resulted in Foles running for his life and throwing the ball away.

The technique issues he has are more from not knowing what he is supposed to do on any given play which causes him to either hesitate at the snap or in the case of not recognizing the blitz, taking a false step inside and not being able to recover in time to handle HIS assignment.

Now with all that being said, I feel the need to say that we as fans tend to focus on individuals and how we think they are performing. Of all the units on any football team, the OLINE is all about cohesion. It's not as much about the individuals as it is the sum of the parts. And with all the injuries there just isn't going to be much cohesion and consistency. Robinson has lined up next to FIVE different guys who have taken their turn at LG in 12 weeks. That is bound to be an issue for a guy who is still trying to figure it out.

 

[Ballhawk]

Coach,
Thanks for the reply! I have thought several times this year that a possible mistake was being made by shuffling too many players around when ever they have one injury, because as you said, it destroys any continuity or cohesion that was being formed in the unit.
My thought was that it would be better to be a little weaker at one position rather than to disrupt several.
Of course as the injuries piled up it just became a merry go round on the line with predictably poor results due to playing so many green players and shifting so many positions.

 

[JackDRams]

For all the flack Boudreau gets in this forum, there isn't a coach on this team who is more detail oriented. He is constantly coaching these guys on technique. Be it hand placement, footwork or just correcting "who" they are supposed to block on any given play. So yes, they coach these guys on technique and fundamentals constantly.

From what I've been told, the issue is work ethic. Greg Robinson has never had to learn how to be better because he has always been so physically better than those he lined up agaist, that the "mental side" of his game was unnecessary. He played in a system at auburn that had four running plays and one protection in pass pro.

Getting him in the film room and actually retaining the things they ask of him have been the biggest challenges.

I was told just the other day that there were at least three separate instances in the Cardinals game where he failed to recognize a blitz that came from the outside. After it was specifically made a point of emphasis during the week in both the film room and on the practice field. All three plays resulted in Foles running for his life and throwing the ball away.

The technique issues he has are more from not knowing what he is supposed to do on any given play which causes him to either hesitate at the snap or in the case of not recognizing the blitz, taking a false step inside and not being able to recover in time to handle HIS assignment.

Now with all that being said, I feel the need to say that we as fans tend to focus on individuals and how we think they are performing. Of all the units on any football team, the OLINE is all about cohesion. It's not as much about the individuals as it is the sum of the parts. And with all the injuries there just isn't going to be much cohesion and consistency. Robinson has lined up next to FIVE different guys who have taken their turn at LG in 12 weeks. That is bound to be an issue for a guy who is still trying to figure it out.

Thanks for all this. A quick question though. If Robinson has a poor work ethic, to your knowledge, have the coaches ever told him to get his shit together? Threaten the kid, tell him he best like watching football if he doesn't feel like working at his technique. His selfishness isn't just hurting himself, it's hurting the entire offense.

 

[CoachO]

Thanks for all this. A quick question though. If Robinson has a poor work ethic, to your knowledge, have the coaches ever told him to get his crap together? Threaten the kid, tell him he best like watching football if he doesn't feel like working at his technique. His selfishness isn't just hurting himself, it's hurting the entire offense.

All the threats in the world would be idle threats at this point. They have zero "other options".

He is a #2 draft pick. They are invested in him. But more than anything with all the injuries their hands are tied.

 

[thirteen28]

All the threats in the world would be idle threats at this point. They have zero "other options".

He is a #2 draft pick. They are invested in him. But more than anything with all the injuries their hands are tied.

What about next year with Battle here?

Either way, I hope GRob gets the message and starts hitting the film room.

 

[RaminExile]

Really enjoyed the read. What I agree with is that moving him inside doesn't fix him. You can't run away or hide bad mechanics inside. I thought that was a great point. All that move does is it means you quit n having a potentially outstanding left tackle for a mediocre guard who will probably get hurt because of his mechanics inside.

What is worrying is why these things aren't getting fixed. It may be that there are simply too many things to fix at once - you tell him to be thinking of his step, his stance, his heel placement, his balance, leading with his knee and his hand placement on every down? It's impossible to be really conscious of your body like that when there are so many things to think about. The problem is he's going to need time and reps to fix it.

He's going to need thousands and thousands of good form snaps to form the unconscious "muscle memory" good form that will hold up under pressure. For every single one of those problems...does he have enough time in practice, off season, preseason and regular season games to do that and for the team to have the patience for him to develop whilst doing that?

Looking at this I honestly don't think you'll see the best out of Greg until he's 28/29 years old (I.e. We'd have to give him a new contract first and he's going to be shaky for a while) and that's if he does stay healthy which is always a big ask in this league.

This is the Not For Long, or the what have you done for me lately league. Patience is in short supply.

@CoachO - from what you've seen or heard do you think the issue is his work ethic or is it a case of him having trouble processing it mentally and retaining it? I hope it's the latter. I don't know but j have a feeling he's just got too much on his plate. Guys with thier technique down know they can focus on the protection and the snap count rather than their form, confident their technique will look after them. If he's worrying about other stuff too it's not surprising to see him miss stuff like the blitz recognition even if it was a point of emphasis as you say.

 

[rdlkgliders]

I have to say great article very informative well written. Now if you can't get the student to open the book he won't understand what is written.
Somewhere there is a disconnect, if it's not ability and not the teacher???

 

[MTRamsFan]

Very interesting article. "You can lead a horse to water." I just don't believe Robinson will improve to the point our LT woes will be solved for years to come. If he's continuing having problems with the details/techniques, then he doesn't have the mindset to master them. Yeah, I know it's only been two years, but regardless he should be showing improvement with his technique, if anything, but he isn't. Notwithstanding, I can understand the difficulties of having to play next to a bunch of different guys through out the season and building a confidence level with those guys. However, to me that still doesn't explain why his technique is poor, but does explain miscommunication with his assignments. If I'm wrong, I will be the first to admit it. Christ, I'm a former lineman, having played through college, and I know the importance of O-Line play.

 

[CoachO]

@CoachO - from what you've seen or heard do you think the issue is his work ethic or is it a case of him having trouble processing it mentally and retaining it? I hope it's the latter. I don't know but j have a feeling he's just got too much on his plate. Guys with thier technique down know they can focus on the protection and the snap count rather than their form, confident their technique will look after them. If he's worrying about other stuff too it's not surprising to see him miss stuff like the blitz recognition even if it was a point of emphasis as you say.

I can see your point about having too many issues to concentrate on. But at the same time I come back to it being more mental than physical. He just isn't comfortable enough in his assignment which causes him to either hesitate or flat out do the wrong thing.

I think it's him not being mature enough to dedicate himself to do what it takes to "prepare as a professional" I understand that the veterans of the unit (Barnes, Reynolds and Saffold) have tried to take him aside and help show him how to watch film. How to prepare. And he just wasn't all that interested in putting in the time.

A few weeks ago, I read something where he (Robinson) acknowledged that it has been an adjustment for him. He admitted that he's always been able to get by on his physical skills and the struggles he was having were more from "off field" issues. I took this to mean "in the classroom".

At some point the responsibility has to fall on the player. If that light bulb doesn't come on soon, he won't be in the league very long. On the other hand, assuming it clicks for him, he can and should be a very good LT for a decade.

 

[MTRamsFan]

I can see your point about having too many issues to concentrate on. But at the same time I come back to it being more mental than physical. He just isn't comfortable enough in his assignment which causes him to either hesitate or flat out do the wrong thing.

I think it's him not being mature enough to dedicate himself to do what it takes to "prepare as a professional" I understand that the veterans of the unit (Barnes, Reynolds and Saffold) have tried to take him aside and help show him how to watch film. How to prepare. And he just wasn't all that interested in putting in the time.

A few weeks ago, I read something where he (Robinson) acknowledged that it has been an adjustment for him. He admitted that burs always been able to get by on his physical skills and the struggles he was having were more from "off field" issues. I took this to mean "in the classroom".

At some point the responsibility has to fall on the player. If that light bulb doesn't come on soon, he won't be in the league very long. On the other hand, assuming it clicks for him, he can and should be a very good LT for a decade.

Very eloquent way of stating my earlier thoughts. Well said.

 

[RamDino]

What about next year with Battle here?

I remember stating earlier this year that Greg Robinson would make a lot of progress this year and be a stud left tackle. I was wrong. Hopefully he starts to mature a little bit and try and learn the techniques that coaches and players are showing him. Aside from that, people have been saying for months that Battle has all the tools necessary to be a great left tackle. Should be an interesting training camp next year. And this o-line, with all the young guys drafted recently, should eventually become a force in the future. One can only hope.

 

[Debacled]

Always have to shake my head when people just jump to the assumption that since players are sucking it up or not progressing that it falls squarely on the coaches shoulders....

These guys aren't machines. The coaches cant just upload a gameplan and technique to their brains and force them to do it. If they aren't putting the time in or grasping the concepts that is on them not the coaches.

Hell if we as fans can pick out and spot deficiencies in a players game then it would be absolutely stupid to assume coaches who have spent a lifetime and make a living out of the business aren't able to pick up on it. I don't care how many NFL games you watch or have rewatched or have taped to watch specific players or whatever else, we aren't suddenly seeing with great clarity what the coaches have or have not been addressing for the entire season.

 

[Merlin]

I don't like that he retweeted it. Hope that's not the case.

 

[LumberTubs]

He definitely did retweet it which is a good thing if it means he read it.

I think he needs to spend some time in the off season with LeCharles Bentley who wrote this article and runs an o line training centre as far as I'm aware (at least he used to)