Reinforcements are on the way for the Los Angeles Rams’ struggling run defense. On Wednesday, the team announced that it has designated A’Shawn Robinson to return from the non-football injury list.
Robinson has yet to play a game for the Rams after landing on the NFI list in August, which kept him out of training camp and the first six games of the season. However, with Robinson now being designated to return, the first step toward him making his debut with the Rams is done.
DT @AshawnRobinson has been designated for return pic.twitter.com/GWSf6ifNtx
— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) October 21, 2020
Robinson can begin practicing this week now that he has missed six weeks. Sean McVay said Monday that Robinson will return to practice and potentially play in a game “maybe in the next couple weeks.”
Just because Robinson has been designated to return doesn’t mean he’s eligible to play on Monday against the Bears. NFI list rules state that a player has to miss the first eight games of the season if placed on the list before the season begins – which Robinson was.
In order for Robinson to suit up and play in a game, the Rams must first add him to the 53-man roster – which won’t happen for at least a couple of weeks. When they do, they’ll have to free up a roster spot, since Robinson isn’t taking one up right now.
The first game Robinson can play in is Week 10 against the Seahawks, which comes after the Rams’ bye. That’s also the first game Jordan Fuller will be eligible to return for, so if both wind up playing, it’ll be a huge boost to a defense that will be going up against a high-powered Seahawks attack.
The Rams signed Robinson to a two-year, $17 million contract this offseason. He originally planned to opt out of the season due to the pandemic, but the Rams tweaked his contract to keep the door open for him to play – which it seems he now plans to do.
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