Brian Robinson Jr. spent the first three seasons of his NFL career with the Washington Commanders. He exceeded 850 scrimmage yards in all of them and even emerged as their starting running back.
This apparently wasn’t enough to keep him around for a fourth season, as he is no longer with the team. The Commanders opted to move on from him and go in a different direction at the position.
Why Is Brian Robinson Jr. No Longer on the Commanders?
Robinson was traded to the San Francisco 49ers prior to the start of the 2025 NFL season. The move was a bit surprising considering his consistent production and featured role in their offense, but they apparently felt a change to their backfield was necessary.
They entered the year with Austin Ekeler as the lone veteran with notable experience, but they were reportedly confident in Jacory Croskey-Merritt as well. Ekeler suffered an injury shortly into the season, giving the rookie an opportunity to prove his value. He has been solid in his expanded role with 437 scrimmage yards and four total touchdowns through seven games.
While Croskey-Merritt has been the primary replacement this year, the Commanders have also utilized Jeremy McNichols and Chris Rodriguez Jr. in their offensive game plan. As for Robinson, he has been serving as a backup for superstar Christian McCaffrey with the 49ers and has been lightly used this season.
Robinson has recorded just 155 scrimmage yards and has failed to score a touchdown this year as a healthy McCaffrey commands a massive workload and a clearly featured role in the 49ers backfield. Through the first seven weeks of the season, McCaffrey has earned a PFSN RB Impact grade of B- and is ranked 13th in the league.
The catch is that he has often struggled to stay on the field with an extensive injury history in his career. He missed 13 games last year and has completed only two of the past five seasons without missing time due to injury.
This is likely one of the main reasons the 49ers were interested in trading for Robinson when the Commanders made him available. He can essentially serve as an insurance policy for McCaffrey, especially with Jordan Mason departing for the Minnesota Vikings during the offseason. It cost them just a sixth-round pick to acquire him.
He is the only other running back on their roster, along with McCaffrey, to receive any carries during the 2025 NFL season so far. He appears firmly planted into their RB2 role, which doesn’t come with much volume behind one of the best players in the game for now, but surely could if another injury issue arises.