FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. – Photographers love Laurent Robinson.
The rookie wide receiver just has a way with the camera, mostly due to the plethora of picture-perfect catches he’s made so far at Russell Falcons Training Camp and through off-season workouts.
Robinson, a third-round selection out of Illinois State, has impressed coaches with his speed and raw skill. But it’s the way he makes catches – arms extended, body stretched and hands plucking the spinning pigskin out of the air – that makes him fun to watch.
It’s fitting, considering what Robinson really wants to do around camp is have fun. He doesn’t get distracted by the praise that has followed him thus far in his NFL career.
“I try not to think about it too much and continue to play football like it’s backyard football,” he said.
The approach has served Robinson well.
His 192 receptions and 3,007 receiving yards are Illinois State records and rank in the top five in Gateway Conference history. In four seasons he also racked up 29 touchdowns. He gained 292 receiving yards in a single game (2005 vs. Indiana State) – a school and conference record.
Robinson played in just nine games last season but 31 of his 40 catches resulted in first downs.
Illinois State may not carry the flash that some major colleges do, but that doesn’t worry Robinson who, at 6-foot-2 and 195 pounds, posses the size to fit in with most NFL receiving corps.
“I guess I have something to prove, sure, but to me it’s all football,” he said earlier in the off-season. “No matter what school you come from the game is the game and there is going to be just as much to learn and adapt to no matter where you went to school.
So, while people may look at me with different expectations, my expectations are all about playing football the best I can and I’ll let others worry about how they think my background measures up.”
He’s always paid special attention to detail, however, since he didn’t start playing until he was a freshman in high school.
“I wasn’t very good,” Robinson said with a sheepish grin.
That certainly has changed now that coaches are looking for him to play a role in the new Falcons offense. But Robinson is taking everything in stride.
“It feels good just getting back into the routine and the flow of things and getting back into the offense and the playbook,” he said. Just getting the timing down with the quarterback and just being out here with the guys is a lot of fun.
“I listen to (praise) in a positive way. I try to block it out when I’m in practice and just play my game the way I was taught and raised to play.”
The rookie said coaches and veteran players have continued working with him on his technique.
“I’d say Joe Horn (has been my biggest mentor),” Robinson said. “He’s taken me under his wing. He’s watching me out there. If I make a mistake, I get jammed at the line or something, he’s pulling me off to the side and saying: ‘Do this or do this.’ I can work on that and it applies to the field.”
Judging from the stylish catches Robinson has made thus far, the advice is paying off in photos and cheers.
“I’m just trying to make the play,” he said. “We’re play makers, so we have to go out there and make a play and put on a show for the fans.”
