After a season in which he led the NFL in yards from scrimmage, Atlanta Falcons running back Bijan Robinson has been named a finalist for the Associated Press Offensive Player of the Year award. Robinson’s performance this year included breaking the Falcons’ single-season record with 2,298 yards from scrimmage, a figure that led all NFL players and stands as the 12th highest total in league history.
Robinson averaged 135.2 yards per game and surpassed 160 yards seven times during the season. His top performance came in Week 6 against the Buffalo Bills, where he gained 238 yards from scrimmage. He also recorded 229 total yards in Week 17 versus the Los Angeles Rams. Following both games, Robinson was recognized as NFC Offensive Player of the Week.
As a rusher, Robinson achieved a career-high of 1,478 rushing yards, ranking fourth among all players this season. In addition to his ground game, he caught passes for a career-best 820 receiving yards—second most among running backs this year. He is only the second running back ever to reach at least 1,400 rushing and 800 receiving yards in one season.
Robinson’s achievements come after being voted to the Pro Bowl Games for a second consecutive year and earning AP First-Team All-Pro honors as a running back and Second-Team All-Pro recognition as an all-purpose player.
For comparison, last year’s AP Offensive Player of the Year was Saquon Barkley, who finished with league-leading marks in rushing yards (2,005), carries (345), and average per game (125.3). This year, Jaxon Smith-Njigba received Offensive Player of the Year honors from the Pro Football Writers of America. Robinson was also named to PFWA’s All-NFC Team alongside offensive guard Chris Lindstrom and rookie safety Xavier Watts.
The Atlanta Falcons are based in Atlanta, Georgia and compete in the National Football League’s NFC South Division official website. The team began play as an expansion franchise in 1965 official website and has appeared twice in Super Bowls—in 1998 and again in 2016 official website. Their mascot is Freddie the Falcon official website.
As voting continues for this major league honor, Robinson is considered by many to be one of football’s top offensive players this season.
