Top draft fits for Texas RB Bijan Robinson

A consensus top-10 talent, Texas Longhorns running back Bijan Robinson could be drafted as high as No. 10 overall or he could fall closer to the end of Day 1.

While one of the top five players in the draft based on pure talent, Robinson could be the victim of a growing trend across the NFL — a declining willingness to spend a high first-round pick on a running back.

Most draft experts agree that even if he does slip, Robinson won’t last until the second round. Draft position aside, here are the three best fits for Robinson as he makes the jump to the NFL.

Buffalo Bills

There was an overwhelming feeling during the Bills 27-10 playoff loss to the Cincinnati Bengals that they are just one starting running back away from being a legitimate Super Bowl contender. Cincinnati out-rushed Buffalo 172 yards to 64 in that contest, forcing quarterback Josh Allen to throw the ball 42 times. The Bills' offense, simply put, is too one-dimensional.

While Buffalo did sign Damien Harris this spring -- he is just two years removed from a 929-yard, 15-touchdown season with New England -- a running back-by-committee approach with Harris, James Cook and Nyheim Hines offers Allen only so much help. Robinson had 453 carries with back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons and 29 touchdowns over his last two seasons in Austin. That’s the kind of game-changing talent that could help Buffalo get over its playoff hump.

Cincinnati Bengals

Though he has rushed for over 1,000 yards in three of the last five seasons, Joe Mixon makes too much money and is becoming too much of an off-the-field headache to keep around on a team that is very much in its Super Bowl window.

With Samaje Perine now in Denver, the Bengals would need to add another back if they were to part ways with Mixon, who has a $12.79 million cap hit in 2023. A pre-June 1 cut would save the team $7.29 million. Robinson could become a hot commodity should he slip into the 20's on Day 1, meaning that Cincinnati, which holds the No. 28 overall pick, might have to move up to snag him. Adding a back of Robinson's caliber would not only make Joe Burrow’s life exponentially easier, it would come with no off-field risk.

Los Angeles Chargers

Yes, the Chargers do have Austin Ekeler, one of the top running backs in the NFL. However, he does not appear to be in the team’s long-term plans, as evidenced by their unwillingness to talk about a contract extension with him. This has prompted the 27-year-old to ask for a trade. Thus, Ekeler could be a valuable trade asset should L.A. choose to try and move up at any point during the draft.

Robinson could step right in and be a Day 1 starter for the Chargers, whose depth chart at running back (assuming no Ekeler extension) consists of Joshua Kelley, Larry Rountree and Isaiah Spiller. Just because Justin Herbert can throw it close to 700 times per season does not mean that he should. Adding a runner like Robinson — capable of putting up 1,000-yard seasons on the regular — could also help reduce the wear and tear on injury-prone receivers like Keenan Allen and Mike Williams. It would, if nothing else, give defensive coordinators something to think about other than Herbert.