When the San Francisco 49ers acquired running back Brian Robinson Jr. in a trade with the Washington Commanders on Aug. 22, the former Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa and Alabama standout didn’t figure to get same amount of work with his new team as he had with his old one.
Robinson had led Washington in rushing yards in each of his three NFL seasons. But San Francisco had Christian McCaffrey at running back, and when healthy, he doesn’t miss many snaps.
Entering Sunday’s game against the New York Giants, Robinson had run for 144 yards on 36 carries in San Francisco’s first eight games, and he had not had a rushing attempt in two of the 49ers’ previous three games.
In San Francisco’s 34-24 victory over New York on Sunday, McCaffrey ran for 106 yards and one touchdown on 28 carries and caught five passes for 67 yards and one touchdown.
But Robinson contributed 53 yards and his first touchdown for the 49ers on five rushing attempts. Robinson scored on a bruising 18-yard run as San Francisco took a 27-10 lead with 11:35 left to play.
Robinson’s touchdown was the eighth consecutive run called by 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan. Robinson covered the final 33 yards in three consecutive carries.
“It’s awesome,” Shanahan said. “It’s so tempting the whole time. You’re like, ‘Man, can you do it again and get away with it? Maybe we should do a play-action or something off of it. No, screw it. We’ll just keep running it.’ And the guys came through. And that’s one of the most enjoyable drives that you can go on when it’s all run plays.”
Robinson also returned a kickoff for 41 yards, catching the football in the end zone and returning it to the San Francisco 40.
“I thought he played real well, too,” Shanahan said. “Ran the ball really well. Completely flipped me. I went from being extremely angry with him for not taking a touchback to eating my own words and saying ‘Hell of a job getting past that.’ I don’t know where he got to, but he got close to the 50, I believe, so it was a hell of a return and played real well today.”
Robinson was among the 37 former Alabama players who got on the field on the ninth Sunday of the NFL’s 106th season.
Two other other former Alabama players were involved in the San Francisco-New York game:
Mac Jones started at quarterback for the 49ers. Jones completed 19-of-24 passes for 235 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions and ran four times for 4 yards. Jones threw touchdown passes of 5 yards to running back Christian McCaffrey as San Francisco tied the score at 7-7 with 4:16 left in the first quarter and 11 yards to wide receiver Jauan Jennings as the 49ers went ahead 14-7 with 13:08 left in the first half. Jones also lost a fumble on a sack.
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Giants offensive lineman Evan Neal dressed for the game but did not play.
In the other Sunday games:
Chicago Bears 47, Cincinnati Bengals 42
Jordan Battle started at safety for the Bengals. Battle tied for the team lead with 10 tackles on defense. He also made two tackles on special teams to equal his career high of 12 tackles established in a 34-20 loss to the Baltimore Ravens on Nov. 16, 2023, and matched in a 17-16 victory over the Cleveland Browns in the first game of the 2025 season.
Bengals wide receiver Jermaine Burton was designated as a game-day inactive.
Bengals center Seth McLauglin is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
Minnesota Vikings 27, Detroit Lions 24
Jonathan Allen started at defensive tackle for the Vikings. Allen made two tackles and registered three quarterback hits.
Terrion Arnold started at cornerback for the Lions. Arnold made three tackles, intercepted one pass and broke up two more in his return from a two-game injury absence. A shoulder injury had sidelined Arnold since Oct. 5. He picked off Minnesota quarterback J.J. McCarthy at the Detroit 39-yard line with 47 seconds left in the first half for his first NFL interception.
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Brian Branch started at safety for the Lions. Branch made six tackles.
Jahmyr Gibbs started at running back for the Lions. Gibbs ran for 25 yards on nine carries and caught three passes for 3 yards. With 28, Gibbs had the fewest yards from scrimmage in a game in his NFL career.
Vikings center Ryan Kelly is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
Vikings kicker Will Reichard (Hoover) made field goals of 50 and 20 yards and hit three extra points.
Vikings outside linebacker Dallas Turner made two tackles on defense and two tackles on special teams.
Jameson Williams started at wide receiver for the Lions. Williams had four receptions for 66 yards and one touchdown. Williams scored on a 37-yard pass from quarterback Jared Goff to cut Minnesota’s lead to three points with 1:55 to play.
Carolina Panthers 16, Green Bay Packers 13
Josh Jacobs started at running back for the Packers. Jacobs ran for 87 yards and one touchdown on 17 carries and caught four passes for 13 yards. Jacobs scored on a 1-yard run as Green Bay tied the score at 13-13 with 2:32 left to play.
Xavier McKinney started at safety for the Packers. McKinney led Green Bay with nine tackles, recorded one sack, intercepted one pass and forced one fumble. McKinney had a strip-sack of Carolina quarterback Bryce Young in the second quarter, but the Panthers recovered the football. Two snaps later, McKinney intercepted Young in the end zone. McKinney’s interception was his second of the season and 19th of his career. McKinney has 3.5 career sacks in his career.
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Panthers defensive end LaBryan Ray (James Clemens) did not record any stats.
A’Shawn Robinson started at defensive tackle for the Panthers. Robinson made two tackles and registered one quarterback hit.
Bryce Young started at quarterback for the Panthers. Young completed 11-of-20 passes for 102 yards with no touchdowns and one interception and ran two times for 9 yards.
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Denver Broncos 18, Houston Texans 15
Will Anderson Jr. started at defensive end for the Texans. Anderson recorded one sack and registered two quarterback hits. Anderson has six sacks this season.
Texans linebacker Christian Harris did not record any stats.
Broncos outside linebacker Que Robinson (Jackson-Olin) made one tackle.
Broncos linebacker Drew Sanders is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
Broncos cornerback Patrick Surtain II was designated as a game-day inactive. A pectoral injury kept Surtain out of the lineup.
Henry To’oTo’o started at linebacker for the Texans. To’oTo’o made seven tackles and recorded one tackle for loss.
New England Patriots 24, Atlanta Falcons 23
Christian Barmore started at defensive tackle for the Patriots. Barmore did not record any stats.
Patriots tight end CJ Dippre is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
Falcons inside linebacker Ronnie Harrison made two tackles.
Falcons safety DeMarcco Hellams did not record any stats.
Patriots linebacker Anfernee Jennings (Dadeville) registered one quarterback hit.
Pittsburgh Steelers 27, Indianapolis Colts 20
Colts defensive tackle Tim Smith is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
Los Angeles Chargers 27, Tennessee Titans 20
Jalyn Armour-Davis (St. Paul’s Episcopal) started at cornerback for the Titans. Armour-Davis made four tackles.
Bradley Bozeman (Handley) started at center for the Chargers.
Chargers defensive lineman Justin Eboigbe made one tackle on special teams.
Chargers defensive lineman Da’Shawn Hand is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
Chargers running back Najee Harris is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
J.C. Latham started at right offensive tackle for the Titans.
Titans wide receiver Calvin Ridley was designated as a game-day inactive. A hamstring injury kept Ridley out of the lineup for the third game in a row.
Chargers punter JK Scott averaged 52.3 yards on four punts, with a 27.8-yard net. Scott had a 60-yard punt returned 67 yards for a Tennessee touchdown, a 46-yarder to a fair catch at the Tennessee 43-yard line, a 56-yarder returned 20 yards to the Tennessee 28 and a 47-yarder returned 11 yards to the Tennessee 41.
Los Angeles Rams 34, New Orleans Saints 10
Ga’Quincy “Kool-Aid” McKinstry (Pinson Valley) started at cornerback for the Saints. McKinstry equaled his career high with seven tackles. It’s the third time this season that McKinstry has reached seven tackles.
Buffalo Bills 28, Kansas City Chiefs 21
Bills defensive tackle Phidarian Mathis made one tackle. Buffalo elevated Mathis from its practice squad to make him eligible to play.
Tyrell Shavers started at wide receiver for the Bills. Shavers had a 7-yard reception.
Seattle Seahawks 38, Washington Commanders 14
Trey Amos started at cornerback for the Commanders. The rookie tied for the team lead in tackles by equaling his career high with seven.
Commanders wide receiver Ja’Corey Brooks is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
Josh Jobe started at cornerback for the Seahawks. Jobe made one tackle. Jobe left the game to be evaluated for a concussion.
Commanders linebacker Ale Kaho did not record any stats.
Seahawks offensive tackle Amari Kight (Thompson) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
Jalen Milroe was designated as the Seahawks’ emergency third quarterback He could play only if Sam Darnold and Drew Lock could not.
Seahawks fullback Robbie Ouzts did not record any stats in his return from a four-game injury absence.
Daron Payne (Shades Valley) started at defensive tackle for the Commanders. Payne made three tackles.
Seahawks nose tackle Jarran Reed shared one sack bringing his career total to 40.
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Week 9 started on Thursday night, when the Baltimore Ravens defeated the Miami Dolphins 28-6.
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Week 9 concludes on Monday, when the Arizona Cardinals and Dallas Cowboys square off at 7:15 p.m. CDT at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. ABC and ESPN will televise the game.
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