Chicago Bears 2017 draft position profiles: Offensive linemen

Cam Robinson, Alabama (6-foot-6, 315 pounds)

Robinson is the elite of this offensive linemen draft class. He is an imposing figure and he just shuts down opposing defenders. His enormous body looked NFL-ready when he was in high school. He won the 2016 Outland Trophy winner, and nearly every draft expert has him as the top offensive lineman.

Robinson also adds versatility on the line. Even though he is a left tackle, he plays on the right side as well, and he also plays guard. A team’s offense is instantly boosted with his presence.

Robinson started all three seasons at Tuscaloosa. He has great balance and moves well laterally. His burst off the snap is great, and he blows people backward on the run. He is excellent going to the second level, where linebackers try their best to avoid him.

Robinson doesn’t possess great footwork, but with his size his legs are anchors. It is difficult for defenders to move him.

Robinson comes with some problems, though. Before the 2016 season, he and a teammate got arrested on drugs and weapons charges. Eventually, the charges were dropped, but that caused controversy.

The district attorney, Jerry Jones, admitted that the main reason for the dropped charges was their status as Alabama football players. “I want to emphasize once again that the main reason I’m doing this is that I refuse to ruin the lives of two young men who have spent their adolescence and teenage years, working and sweating, while we were all in the air conditioning.”

This is something Robinson needs to answer during the Combine interviews. The NFL already has an image problem, and Robinson needs to assure teams he won’t add to it. The same happened to Laremy Tunsil before last year’s draft, and he plummeted from a possible top-5 pick to number 13. The Dolphins lucked out, but 13 is different from 3.