Brian Robinson is off Crutches, Swelling in Knee Has Gone Down

Washington Commanders running back Brian Robinson is progressing well as he continues to recover from multiple gunshots he suffered on Aug. 28. Robinson was shot in the knee and glute while resisting a robbery attempt in Washington, D.C. The bullet missed all major ligaments, tendons and bones.

Commanders head coach Ron Rivera said on Wednesday that the swelling in Robinson's knee has gone down “an awful lot” and that he’s off crutches.

Robinson was placed on the Non-Football Injury (NFI) list last week, which makes him unavailable for at least the first four weeks of the regular season. The team remains optimistic that its third-round pick out of Alabama will be able to return in week five.

“There is a process, a number of steps that he’ll have to go through and really just to show [head trainer] Al [Bellamy] and the doctors that he’s ready to play,” Rivera said on Tuesday.

Washington has no plans of rushing the 23-year-old rookie into action and know it will be a process before he returns to the football field.

“Those first few days of recovery were tough on him because I think it was the second day he was really sore and it was one of those things that, you know, I told him, ‘Hey, just stay home, relax a little bit, and we’ll come get you pretty soon,” Rivera said.

“As he goes through this process the timeline in terms of his daily workout schedule and recovery schedule will change.”

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Robinson was fantastic in the preseason for Washington. He found the end zone in his preseason game and the following week he led all Commanders running backs with 31 yards on 8 carries. The former Alabama tailback is expected to play a significant role in the Commanders offense when he returns to full strength.