HOUSTON (AP) -The last time Dunta Robinson played in Oakland the cornerback left the field on a cart with devastating knee and hamstring injuries.
On Sunday, he’ll return healthy and helping to lead a Houston Texans team that has won a franchise-record four games in a row.
Robinson said he hasn’t thought a lot about his return, but that he’ll probably reflect on last year’s injury Sunday.
“It won’t be something that sticks with me for long,” he said. “I’ll walk out, I’ll think about it and then it’s time to play football … I still have never seen the film on the injury. It’s just not something that I want to revisit.”
But when talking about the injury Wednesday, Robinson shared with reporters that he had a sort of premonition before the Nov. 4, 2007 game in Oakland.
“I woke up that morning and I told myself – well, it just felt different,” he said. “I said: ‘OK, something is different. Either I’m going to have a spectacular game or something really bad is going to happen.’ And of course, option No. 2 is what occurred.”
The injury, which ripped his hamstring off the bone and tore his anterior cruciate ligament, came in a collision with a teammate. His leg got trapped under the pile and he couldn’t free himself from the crush of players.
He missed 12 games recovering and returned in a limited role in mid-October before getting back in the starting lineup four games ago. The fifth-year player has 31 tackles and two interceptions this season.
Coach Gary Kubiak knows Sunday will be a big day for Robinson.
“For him to walk on that field this week after the way he’s played this year and come back has got to be probably something special for him to think about,” Kubiak said. “I remember him laying there and then putting him on the cart last year during that game and it was devastating. He deserves the credit for making it back that way and he’s playing really well right now.”
Kubiak has been so impressed with Robinson’s play that earlier in the week he credited his return to the starting lineup with sparking Houston’s winning streak. The coach said he’s been most important in improving the play of the entire secondary.
l do both.”
Robinson said those things are good to hear, but all that really matters is success on the field.
“My job is to go out there and make plays,” he said. “I’m not trying to be an inspiration. I love to play football and that’s the bottom line. I just go out there every Sunday and I just try to play as hard as I can play.”
Robinson said he isn’t quite back to his old self, but that he’s getting closer each week. He’s hoping he can help the Texans (7-7) win their final two games and finish with the first winning record in franchise history.
“I’ve been 8-8. I’ve been 7-9. But I’ve never been 9-7,” he said. “So, that’s the most important thing and that’s what myself and as well as the rest of my teammates (are) trying to do, have our first winning season ever.”
Add A Comment