Yardbarker

Sam Robinson

Writer

Sam Robinson is a sportswriter from Kansas City, Missouri. He primarily covers the NFL for Yardbarker. Moving from wildly injury-prone sprinter in the aughts to reporter in the 2010s, Sam set up camp in three time zones covering everything from high school water polo to Division II national championship games. He has since settled in as the husband of a track and field coach, concentrating on the NFL. Boasting an unhealthy interest in the league’s history and fashion trends, Sam is the lead writer for Pro Football Rumors and has written about the sport for Yardbarker since 2018. In addition to working as a writer/editor for a few newspapers – the Cleveland Plain Dealer and St. Joseph (Missouri) News-Press, to name two – in a former life that included some awkward awards-show hosting gigs thankfully inaccessible online, Sam has written about the Olympics for The Athletic.

EXPERTISE:

NFL, track and field, boxing

Why top seeds, coaches on hot seat will love expanded NFL playoffs

The new 14-team arrangement shifts too much power to No. 1 seeds, writes Yardbarker's Sam Robinson. 

Pricey extensions for offensive stars could handcuff Cowboys

For the Cowboys to make a $35M-plus-per-year contract for a quarterback with a debatable ceiling work, they need to be perhaps unrealistically strong nearly everywhere else, writes Yardbarker's Sam Robinson.

Which current NFL owners have the highest win percentage?

Which franchises have done the best under their current ownership? After the NFL's 100th season, here is how the field stacks up.

And the winner of NFL offseason so far is ...

The Browns, Dolphins and Broncos made significant offseason additions. Yardbarker's Chris Mueller, Michael Nania and Sam Robinson highlight the best move and an under-the-radar move for each team.

Texans paying heavy price for foolish front-office strategy

An offensive-minded coach who has yet to produce a top-10 Texans offense, Houston head coach Bill O'Brien has somehow commandeered more power than he’s earned, Yardbarker's Sam Robinson writes.

Next man up: The greatest backup QBs in NFL history

Here are the greatest backup quarterbacks in NFL history. In an effort to not include overqualified QBs, only passers who started less than a third of their teams' games are eligible. 

10 offseason ripple effects of COVID-19 for NFL

The NFL will undoubtedly be altered by the cororanvirus pandemic. Yardbarker's Sam Robinson takes a deeper look. 

Three superb value signings in NFL free agency

Cornerbacks Chris Harris (Chargers) and Bryan Poole (Jets) and linebacker Cory Littleton (Raiders) are free-agency bargains. Yardbarker's Sam Robinson, Michael Nania and Chris Mueller explain why.

How unusual decisions made Buccaneers' risky Brady move possible

Tom Brady moving to Tampa presents unprecedented possibilities for an organization accustomed to its central figures sitting through production meetings with Fox’s fourth- or fifth-string broadcast crews, writes Yardbarker's Sam Robinson.

Shabby treatment by Panthers puts Cam Newton in terrible position

If no team trades for Cam Newton, the player who was the consensus front-runner to become the face of the NFL not too long ago may be stuck in free agency for the foreseeable future, Yardbarker's Sam Robinson writes.

The best one-and-done NFL seasons

Although the sports world is experiencing unprecedented chaos, the NFL's free agency window remains scheduled to open next week. This could mean standouts like Jadeveon Clowney could be heading elsewhere after previously relocating in 2019...

Ideal landing spot for free agents Bridgewater, Rivers, Winston

Tom Brady is the biggest name in free agency, but quarterbacks Teddy Bridgewater, Philip Rivers and Jameis Wisnton also could jump-start a new team. Yardbarker's Chris Mueller, Sam Robinson and Michael Nania offer possible landing spots.

Buyer beware: 15 NFL free agents who may not be worth huge payday

With the NFL free-agency marketplace set to open next week, Yardbarker's Sam Robinson examines the bigger names who could cash in.

For cost-conscious shoppers, these free-agent RBs could be bargains

Kenyan Drake, Melvin Gordon and Lamar Miller are good options for running back-needy teams. Yardbarker's Chris Mueller, Sam Robinson and Michael Nania weigh in.

Realistic free-agent targets for all NFL teams

The beginning of the NFL’s legal tampering period looms Monday, and most of the 32 teams will have key free-agency blueprints equipped with need hierarchies and contingency plans. Yardbarker's Sam Robinson pinpoints potential pickups for all teams.

Three free agents who could turbocharge defenses

Defensive standouts Jadeveon Clowney, Byron Jones and Chris Harris could be on the move in free agency. Yardbarker projects potential landing spots.

Redskins, Lions, Giants could reap riches in draft from QB-needy teams

After the free-agency and trade dominoes fall, some teams will have seminal decisions to make near the top of the Draft, Yardbarker's Sam Robinson writes.

Vick to Johnny U: Best free-agent QB signings in NFL history

On the cusp of NFL free agency, QB Tom Brady -- you may have heard of him -- is in the news. But he isn't the first big-name QB to reach free agency. Yardbarker's Sam Robinson spotlights the 25 best free-agent signal-caller signings.

Staying power: Longest tenures with one team in NFL history

A host of future Hall of Famers have either played their last down for their original team or are considering an offseason departure. With that in mind, let's look at where their respective tenures rank all time.

Don't bet against Patriots if Tom Brady departs

Of all the stopgap-type solutions, Cincinnati's Andy Dalton may be the least flashy name as a replacement for Tom Brady in New England, writes Yardbarker's Sam Robinson. But he may be the best option. 

The best rematches in heavyweight history

With Deontay Wilder-Tyson Fury II doubling as perhaps the most anticipated heavyweight fight since Lennox Lewis-Mike Tyson 18 years ago, this is a good time to look at some of the great rematches in boxing's highest-profile division.

Free-agent pool overflows with edge-rushers. Here's where best could land.

Jadeveon Clowney, Arik Armstead, Shaq Barrett, Bud Dupree, Dante Fowler, Matt Judon and Yannick Ngakoue are among the available edge rushers in free agency. Yardbarker's Sam Robinson projects where they could land.

Projecting NFL in 2025, from No. 1 Chiefs to No. 32 Bucs

Which franchises will be best positioned to compete for championships in five years? And which teams face bleak futures? Yardbarker's Sam Robinson places NFL teams in five tiers for 2025.

Ideal landing spots for QBs other than Tom Brady

Tom Brady's status will overshadow the rest of the marketplace, but several other quality QBs could join new teams. Yardbarker's Sam Robinson surveys the landscape.

XFL 2.0: Rebooted league set to debut, but will it last?

The once-mocked operation is back, and while it is still going by “XFL,” the re-spawning league has ditched the extreme components that were the 2001 edition’s top drawing card. Yardbarker's Sam Robinson examines the XFL, which debuts Saturday.