NFL Preseson: New England Patriots rookies vs. NY Giants rookies

CBs Marcus Jones/Jack Jones vs. WR Wan’Dale Robinson

Leading up to the draft, there were a lot of analysts that believed that Wan’Dale Robinson was a good fit for the receiver-needy New England Patriots. But he was off the board by the time the Patriots made their second round selection. So we’ll either see what New England missed or if Marcus and Jack Jones can make Robinson disappear.

Robinson checked a lot of boxes for a Patriots receiver: excellent runner after the catch ability, used in jet sweeps and receiver screens, breakaway speed. But NFL Combine measurements revealed that Robinson is just 5-8, 178 pounds. That’s undersized by NFL standards.

Marcus Jones says, “Hold my beer.” At 5-8 174 pounds, Jones has a playmate for the evening. It would be must-see TV to see if the former Houston Cougar can stay step-for-step with the shifty Robinson. There might not be a more highly anticipated match-up of evenly skilled rookies on the field.

As good as it could get during the routes, it gets better after the catch. Marcus is an enthusiastic tackler. He might have to be a little more patient with Robinson instead of trying to line Robinson up for a big hit. If Marcus misses, Robinson would be off to the races.

The battle in the slot will be fun, but Robinson can be split out wide as well. That could be where Jack Jones will be waiting for Robinson. Obviously a little taller (5-11 177), Jack Jones was so good during OTAs that he earned some first team reps back in May. That talk of Jack’s sticky coverage will be put to the test against Robinson.

The only thing missing from this match-up is Robinson isn’t a big, physical receiver. That’s a challenge Marcus and Jack have to face eventually. It will be interesting to see if they are overmatched or have ways to compensate for their disadvantage when facing a bigger receiver.