We are currently in process of doing brief reviews of all of the free agents on the Cleveland Browns. After seeing the overwhelming support that Jayme Mithcell received, can our other free agent defensive linemen follow suit?
DE Derreck Robinson
How and When He Joined the Browns: In need of depth in December of the 2009 season, the Browns signed Robinson to the 53-man roster but he did not record a statistic that season. Prior to that, he had been in the league for several years as a backup and an undrafted free agent. The last team he was with before Cleveland was the Dallas Cowboys during training camp.
Productivity Level Last Season: Robinson was invited back last season and ended up making the final roster. He ended up seeing more playing time as expected, posting a career high in combined tackles (24). He also recorded half a sack in the final game of the season against the Pittsburgh Steelers. He did not start any games and I would not qualify him as a stout defender against the run or anything like that.
Why Keeping Him Could Make Sense: It should not cost much to bring him back. He is currently listed at 6-5, 295 pounds, which does not put him too far off from the typical size of a 4-3 defensive end. I don't see him as a starter since I can't see him having the speed we envision, but maybe he could return as a backup.
What the Browns Should Do: If there is a camp, we should invite him to camp just in case the undrafted free agent defensive ends we bring in do not outperform him. Otherwise, I'm pretty much lukewarm when it comes to re-signing Robinson because he is easily interchangable with other players who will be free agents. I'd probably vote, "no."
Now it's your turn -- vote in the poll below on whether or not the team should try to re-sign Derreck Robinson!