3 Potential Trade Landing Spots for Brian Robinson Jr: Could the Texans Make a Move?

Every preseason, we see contract disputes and camp risers (or fallers) result in deals. We just saw John Metchie III shipped to the Philadelphia Eagles in a Sunday deal.

It appears a much bigger name could be following suit. Brian Robinson Jr. of the Washington Commanders will sit out Monday's preseason game as the team is reportedly shopping him in lieu of negotiating a new contract.

The former third-round pick from the Alabama Crimson Tide has rushed for at least 725 yards and 5 touchdowns in consecutive seasons as Washington's goal-line hammer. The team's rising star, Jacory Croskey-Merritt, apparently has D.C. comfortable with letting him walk.

BRob is a good NFL back that can help someone this year. Who might make a deal for the 26-year-old?

Brian Robinson Jr. Trade Destinations

Houston Texans

Perhaps no backfield has been more turbulent than the Texans' in the 2025 preseason.

Joe Mixon could be out for a while with a nagging ankle and/or foot issue that, really, stems back to 2024. It's growing increasingly unlikely that Houston gets a high-level contribution from him this season, leaving veteran Nick Chubb (signed in June) and rookie Woody Marks as the current potential contributors.

This is probably a place where Robinson could play a lot as the goal-line back for C.J. Stroud and a group of weapons that we know to be good. Plus, we know GM Nick Caserio -- who traded Metchie yesterday -- loves to make deals.

Houston also already has six former Alabama players on its roster, so Robinson would fit right in to the Saturday chants of "Roll Tide".

However, consider me stumped that Houston would invest such heavy draft capital into Marks just not to give him a shot in this exact scenario. Still, if the Texans are interested, they have to have a leg up on the other two teams on this list. They're out of conference in the AFC.

Chicago Bears

If I could handpick Robinson's destination, it would be the Bears.

Is there not a more readily available comparison to David Montgomery anywhere in the league than Brian Robinson? He'd be perfect in that exact role of Ben Johnson's offense in Chicago, which right now is trying to recreate Johnson's former two-headed monster at running back with some combination of D'Andre Swift, Roschon Johnson, and rookie Kyle Monangai.

Sunday's 38-0 preseason win over the Buffalo Bills doesn't mean much in the grand scheme of things, but this looked like a team ready to make noise in 2025. The one thing this offense is missing is a hammer to compliment Swift, who already had a successful year for Johnson in 2021 when he drew 78 targets out of the backfield.

Robinson's 80.3 average draft position (ADP) would skyrocket if he was entrusted in such a role, and I don't think it would greatly compromise Swift (61.0 ADP).

Dallas Cowboys

Dallas needs to be included on any list about a team needing a running back, but there's an obvious obstacle here. Would Washington help someone who, with an upgrade at running back, is very dangerous to their standing in the NFC East?

I think that answer is likely no, but if there's a team who might be willing to overpay, it's the Cowboys. Their room of RBs is nearly confirmed as awful.

Javonte Williams, 25, returning to pre-injury form is likely their best hope, and he's yet to play in preseason for rest purposes. Rookie fifth-rounder Jaydon Blue (heel) hasn't been able to play, either. Miles Sanders, Deuce Vaughn, and rookie Phil Mafah all averaged fewer than 2.5 yards per carry (YPC) on Saturday and look terrible.

The Cowboys have made it clear they're not willing to invest much into running back, which might mean Breece Hall -- also potentially on the block -- might be too rich for their taste. If they can somehow navigate a lower asking price for Robinson from their division rival, that might be their solution to this gigantic problem.

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