The roster decision affords the Commanders flexibility. Robinson was shot in his knee and glute area. According to a person with knowledge of the situation, the bullet that went through his knee did not damage bone or ligament, possibly sparing him from a longer recovery.
If Robinson stays on the roster, he would count against the 53-player cap, but he would then be able to return whenever he is healthy and cleared by the team’s medical staff. Should doctors determine in the next few days that he will need more time, the team can still place him on the non-football injury list or injured reserve and bring him back as early as Week 5.
“The biggest thing, more than anything else, is the reports about [the bullets] not hitting anything and doing any structural damage are, for the most part, true, to a degree,” Rivera said. “Now it’s a matter of how he works through his rehab program.”
On Tuesday afternoon, he returned to the team facility wearing a wrap around his right leg and using crutches. Robinson, who was greeted by Rivera and running backs coach Randy Jordan in the lobby, came with a gift — a pack of Oreos — to fulfill his rookie duties of bring snacks to his fellow running backs.
After the shooting Sunday, he was taken to MedStar Washington Hospital Center to be treated for non-life-threatening injuries. He announced on Instagram the next day that surgery “went well.”
Two gunmen approached Robinson after he left a storefront in the 1000 block of H Street NE shortly before 6 p.m. Sunday. Robinson was able to “wrestle a firearm away” from one of the assailants before the other shot him twice, D.C. police said. A firearm was discovered about a block away from the scene, and no property was stolen from Robinson.
D.C. police released images captured by a nearby surveillance camera of the two suspects and the car in which they fled. Detectives have asked the public’s assistance in identifying and locating them.
Rivera learned of the shooting Sunday evening and admitted it was one of the harder phone calls he has received as a head coach. He traveled with Jordan to the hospital, where they joined a contingent of Commanders officials — including owners Daniel and Tanya Snyder, team president Jason Wright and General Manager Martin Mayhew — joined them.
Rivera came away from the visit optimistic about Robinson’s health, saying that Robinson is “very fortunate” and that the news from his doctors was “very positive.”
Robinson’s uncertain timeline prompted the team to make last-minute adjustments to its 53-man roster before the league’s 4 p.m. Tuesday deadline. Washington retained four running backs — Robinson, Jonathan Williams, Antonio Gibson and J.D. McKissic — but Rivera warned that the roster is fluid and could change over the next week and a half before the season opener Sept. 11 vs. the Jacksonville Jaguars.
“As we look at the roster, we have three quality backs, and I’m counting Brian right now,” Rivera said. “As we looked at it, we also felt that Jonathan had a good camp. … Jonathan is a very similar style to Brian, and that’s what we’re looking for right now.”
