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Josh Weinfuss, ESPN Staff Writer
TEMPE, Ariz. — Arizona Cardinals first-round pick Darius Robinson said Wednesday that the last few months have been full of “a lot of ups and downs.”
Speaking for the first time this season, the defensive end out of Missouri wasn’t sure if he’d make his NFL debut Sunday against the Seattle Seahawks after a calf injury has kept him sidelined.
“I’m just taking it one day at a time,” Robinson said. “Just excited for the meeting later to watch the tape with my coaches and see where I can get better at from today’s practice.”
Robinson’s return from the calf injury, which he suffered on Aug. 22, has been three months in the making. He initially returned to practice on Oct. 9, the day his practice window was opened, but he didn’t finish that session. He didn’t return to the practice field again until Monday, but both he and coach Jonathan Gannon have said that Robinson didn’t suffer a setback.
Robinson was activated to the 53-man roster on Oct. 29 despite not being healthy or he risked staying on injured reserve for the rest of the season.
However, Robinson still said Wednesday that he was “heartbroken” last month knowing that he wouldn’t be able to return at that time, adding that “we knew what the injury was and [what] the timeline was.”
“All I knew was I had time to get better,” Robinson said. “It was a little long, but we knew what it was. So, just excited for this moment because I really cherish it more than ever because it was taken away from me for so long. So super excited to be back out there.”
When asked if the plan was for him to return to practice on Oct. 9 to test his injury or if he believed that he could use that day to jumpstart his NFL debut, Robinson didn’t have an answer.
“We was just trying to go to practice,” Robinson said. “We was just trying to get better that day. I don’t really have a full answer on that, but it just didn’t go well that [Wednesday] practice. But we’re here at this Wednesday practice, so I’m glad we made it to this day and just super excited for the future.”
Gannon said Arizona will take it “one day a time” with Robinson’s practice reps but said they feel good about the No. 27 pick in April’s draft being back on the field.
“It’s been a long time,” Gannon said. “He’s had a tough road. He had a tough injury and he’s working his tail off to get back out there. He wants to get back out there. He had a good week last week to return to play. All those [medical] people did a good job with him, so we’ll take it one day at a time.”
Arizona had two first-round picks after trading the No. 3 pick to the Houston Texans during last year’s draft. The Cardinals received Houston’s first-round pick in 2024 (No. 27) and also received the 12th and 33rd picks in the 2023 draft, as well as a 2024 third-rounder. Arizona also gave the Texans a 2023 fourth-rounder.
The Cardinals selected wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. at No. 4 pick with their first pick in April.
Robinson hasn’t played a competitive game since the Cotton Bowl on Dec. 29, 2023. But he said he’s not worried about being rusty because of the work he’s put in during rehab.
“People don’t realize when you’re hurt, you work out, you lift and run twice as much as everybody else,” Robinson said. “But, at the end of the day, we got to go out and compete against somebody else.
“So, I’m not really too concerned. I just got to keep stacking reps and having good practices.”
Robinson said he prepared every day while he was injured like he would have if he was playing by taking notes and going through walk-throughs. His goal is that whenever he does take the field, there won’t be any “hiccups.”
He said he’s doing “great” and has felt supported by his teammates, coaches, general manager Monti Ossenfort, owner Michael Bidwill and the Cardinals franchise.
“It means everything,” Robinson said. “These guys, they drafted me, so, I mean, I owe them everything. Once I signed my contract, they brought me here, so I’m going to give my very best each and every day and I’m just so thankful for them because they’re the same people from the draft room in Indy, so when we first met, so I’m just glad to have their support throughout all these things.”
