It was about this time last season that the name of Marcus Robinson began to mean something in the NFL. Because of a flashy second half at Minnesota after Curtis Conway was injured, Robinson made his first NFL start against the Philadelphia Eagles and the rest is Bears history.
Against the Eagles, Robinson caught his first Cade McNown touchdown pass, one that would become the signature of both him and his quarterback. The 80-yard completion would account for the Bears’ only touchdown against Philadelphia.
His 136 yards in that game represented 38 percent of the Bears’ total. When the year was over, Robinson’s 1,400 receiving yards had accounted for 25 percent of the Bears’ total offense, a pace he has kept up as the team heads into its game Sunday at Philadelphia. With 506 yards this season, despite missing one game with a sprained ankle, Robinson represents 24 percent of the team’s yardage. His four touchdown catches are 36 percent of the team’s total.
While last season’s performance was good enough to earn him alternate status for the Pro Bowl, this year’s is more remarkable because he’s no longer a surprise. He is putting up numbers close to those of last year despite attracting double teams he saw only occasionally in 1999.
“Sometimes I’ll have a corner, a ‘backer split out a little bit and a safety over the top (deep),” Robinson said. “So that’s what’s happening. It’s up to the coaches to look at and put you in different positions.
“You like it that the guys are really paying attention, but then you’d like to get the ball and make plays. With guys on you, you have to throw to other places. But I feel comfortable that if the defense is doing that, then someone else is getting one-on-one [coverage], and Macey [Brooks], Marty [Booker] and Eddie [Kennison] are capable of beating [defensive backs] one-on-one.”
What Robinson did to the Eagles last year was notable because it came against one of the NFL’s elite cornerback pairs in Bobby Taylor and Troy Vincent. The Eagles thought enough of ex-Notre Damer Taylor that they signed him to a six-year contract extension in 1998. Former Miami Dolphin Vincent was signed for five years in 1999 after leading the NFL with seven interceptions and being voted to the Pro Bowl.
Ironically, one of the strengths of Taylor and Vincent worked to Robinson’s advantage. Taylor is 6 feet 3 inches and Vincent is 6-1, making them among the tallest corners the 6-3 Robinson faced.
“I like playing against guys my size because then I know how to deal with them,” Robinson said. “Some of them come real quickly out of the break, some like to get their hands on you, but after they get their hands on you it’s more using your physical ability. The little, quick guys can play off you and you can’t bump off them. They’ll be able to cut up under your routes and sometimes be quicker out of the breaks than you are.”
Robinson accomplished his first 100-yard game against the Eagles when the offense had just lost No. 1 receiver Conway, then leading the NFC in receptions. Now he faces Philadelphia with perhaps even a bigger void in the offense, with Bobby Engram gone for the season with a knee injury.
Bears receivers have made occasional plays. But none has been the complement to Robinson that Engram was. Engram was an established, quality veteran with a history of consistent productivity. None of those lining up with Robinson now has approached that.
“The thing about Bobby and me, Bobby was here and doing well, and then I came on the scene with Bobby,” Robinson said.
“So he and I kind of complemented one another. But those guys are doing pretty well. We’re just not throwing the ball like we did last year.”