Robinson exits with Favre

Why would Packers GM Ted Thompson pick Nelson when he had a receiver corp like “The Big Five”? Why would he use his first pick on a position of strength for the second straight year?

Inside 1265 Lombardi Avenue, reporters were wondering who will this Nelson kid challenge in camp? 6'4" Ruvell Martin? No, not your “jump ball” guy. Nelson is 6' 2". Fights for the ball on the sideline. Has returned on special teams. Perhaps Koren Robinson, 28, is in trouble. A sore knee that was never quite right following surgery and rehab during the one – year suspension.

Later during the draft weekend, Thompson was asked who did Nelson remind him of.

“I think he’s probably closest to a Koren," replied Thompson, after he emerged from the Packers war room.  “He’s a big guy, he’s good after the catch. He catches inside, catches in traffic. We think he’s got excellent hands.  I think you’re going to like him quite a bit.”

A bit of foreshadowing.

Robinson probably didn’t help himself by not being a regular in the weight room at Lambeau Field during the offseason, choosing to work out in his hometown of Raleigh, North Carolina,  near family and friends.

He didn’t get many balls thrown his way last season, only catching 21 in nine games after returning from his one – year suspension. The sore knee kept him out of some practices, and it took a couple of weeks before he could be activated after returning to Green Bay.

When Nelson was picked the weekend of the draft, Robinson’s agent was told he could shop his client around to see if he could draw some interest in a trade.

Despite bouts with alcoholism in Seattle and Minnesota, will another team give Robinson a chance to play again in the NFL like Ted Thompson did?

“There was some mild interest when the Green Bay Packers told to seek a trade. Obviously, I was able to talk to a couple of teams out there,” agent Alvin Keels told me today.

Was Robinson surprised that the man who drafted him, and gave him a second chance in Green Bay, released him today?

“He wasn’t totally shocked,” said Keels. “He’s doing just fine, Koren is definitely appreciative of the opportunity Green Bay gave him.”

A FRIEND IN FAVRE

When Robinson arrived in Green Bay, he says Brett Favre welcomed him, understanding what he faced on the road to recovery.

Favre publicly sponsored Robinson, critical of the NFL’s suspension policy, questioning the what good was served by banning a player from the facilities and his team mates while serving a suspension. “ I would think it would be better, improve his chances of recovery, if he was around us,” said Favre.

In Seattle, Robinson was a source of frustration and a sympathetic figure. He would drink, then sleep in his car to avoid missing another practice or team meeting, asking a teammate to wake him.

As a member of the Vikings in 2005, Robinson made a key catch at mid-field to set up the winning field goal as time expired on the Metrodome scoreboard. The Packer had lead the entire game. It was a killer. The Packers went on to a horrible 4 & 12 record, Mike Sherman’s last season.

In August of 2006, a report was standing next to me at the Packers training camp. He’s just come from the Vikings camp, on a tour around the league. How is Koren Robinson doing? Ok? Staying clean? The word was he’d been seen at a lot of the clubs around the Twin Cities.

Robinson had told the reporter his wife was a fan of the nightlife, so he was just tagging along, only drinking seltzer water.

Two weeks later, he was arrested for driving while intoxicated, clocked at over 100mph, trying to get back to the Vikings camp before curfew. It was his third strike, and eventually cost him the one - year suspension, after being acquired by Green Bay.

Robinson spent much of his year off in Phoenix working out alongside Jay Glazer, Fox Sports’ NFL reporter.  It was there he would meet with Commissioner Roger Goodell, who told him at a Cardinals game that he would be re-instated.

On the eve of the NFC Championship against the Giants, Robinson mentioned the irony of being able to play in a Super Bowl in the same stadium where the commissioner told him he would get another chance at football.

Now he hopes he’ll find one more team to give him one more chance.

- Mike Clemens