Bijan Robinson returns to Falcons practice with a hefty new contract, but the same heavy expectations

Todd Kirkland via Getty Images

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — The sun shone a little brighter over the Atlanta Falcons' training camp Tuesday. Bijan Robinson's brief hold-in had ended, and for a moment, all was right in Flowery Branch. 

The Falcons made Robinson the highest-paid running back in NFL history on Tuesday morning, a move that solidifies both Robinson's status as an elite player and the Falcons' offensive core as Atlanta attempts to return to the postseason for the first time in nearly a decade. 

"You want to get your guys ready for the football season, and [the extension] allows us to get Bijan ready. He's eager, beyond eager to get out there," new head coach Kevin Stefanski said Tuesday afternoon. "We'll slowly get him back in there once he's full go, and just let him go."

Maybe it's a bit of projection, but Robinson, clad in a brilliant red No. 7 jersey, seemed to be stepping a little higher on his warmup runs, bouncing on his toes and vaulting his knees to the sky. That's what a guaranteed $51 million over three years, with a potential value of $75 million, will do for you. 

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The Falcons spent Tuesday in shells; it's still too early in the preseason to go back-to-back in full pads. A country-inflected playlist of Jason Aldean and Morgan Wallen echoed over the field, and Falcons president of football operations Matt Ryan zipped passes to receivers like it was 2016 all over again. Through it all, Robinson stayed largely off the field, a wise investment-protection move for the running back who just reset the market. 

Up in Detroit, Jahmyr Gibbs and his people have kept a close eye on the Bijan dealings, given that Gibbs has been executing a similar "hold-in" through the first days of Lions camp. And in Indianapolis, Jonathan Taylor, who's an unrestricted free agent after this season, perked up at the news of Robinson's extension. 

But those are problems for other franchises. Atlanta, for all its uncertainty at quarterback, now has its marquee running back, the 2025 leader in yards from scrimmage, secured. And Stefanski couldn't be happier that Robinson is finally, firmly in-house. 

"He's wired the right way, he was raised the right way, he's a team guy all the way," Stefanski said. "That can be rare sometimes in this day and age, but it's just who he is. It's certainly authentic … He's all about the team, and I don't see that changing."

Robinson has been one of the most electrifying players in the NFL over the last three seasons, with highlight-reel plays a possibility on every snap. Take, for instance, the Falcons' first game of 2025, against Tampa Bay, where Robinson scrambled for a 50-yard touchdown reception on his second touch of the year. That's the kind of explosiveness he provides Atlanta out of the backfield, and that's why he's earning record-breaking numbers.

The flip side, of course, is that Robinson can't carry the entire team by himself. Even with his heroics in that Tampa Bay game, Atlanta went on to lose, one of nine Ls in yet another maddening, disappointing season. 

The Falcons are slow-rolling Robinson's reintroduction to the field, and that includes his media availability. But there's no shortage of players and coaches ready to step up and testify to his importance to the team. New Falcons quarterback Tua Tagovailoa calls Robinson "amazing" and "a very humble person." Running backs coach Michael Pitre praised Robinson for nearly 10 full minutes. 

"He's a guy that loves football. He loves football, he loves his teammates," Pitre said. "The biggest thing is the fact that he's back out there with his teammates, the energy, the enthusiasm that he brings is infectious." 

The Falcons quickly needed that enthusiasm Tuesday. Just hours after the exhilaration of the Robinson signing, 2025 first-round draft pick Jalon Walker went down with what the NFL Network termed a torn ACL. The mood of practice shifted dramatically downward after Walker was carted off the field. 

For Robinson, though, the road ahead, both this season and beyond, remains as bright as any in the NFL. "He's a guy that works endlessly to maximize the talents and gifts that he's been given," Pitre said. "But I also think there's a lot of room for him to continue to play. So that's where our focus goes on, now that he's back out here. How can we continue to get better?" 

That's the eternal question in Atlanta. In Bijan Robinson, they have one answer, now and for the next few years.