The San Francisco 49ers and wide receiver Demarcus Robinson had a rollercoaster 1st year together.
After signing a 2-year, $9.5 million contract in March, Robinson was suspended for the 1st 3 games of the regular season after violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy — a gut punch for the 49ers with injuries decimating their wide receiver corps.
Robinson didn’t do anything to justify his salary when he did return from suspension, finishing with just 22 receptions for 276 yards and 1 touchdown in 14 games.
When all seemed lost, though, Robinson somehow managed to turn things around.
In a 23-19 road upset win over the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Wild Card Round, Robinson had 6 receptions for 111 yards and 1 touchdown on 7 targets.
That got Robinson another year in San Francisco, but Niner Noise’s Peter Panacy predicts that will be the end of Robinson’s tenure in the Bay Area.
“A year ago, it was reasonable to think Robinson would be an under-the-radar big-impact player for the 49ers,” Panacy wrote on July 11. “But, aside from an impressive outing in the Wild Card win over the Philadelphia Eagles, nothing of the sort materialized. He had a mere 22 catches for 276 yards and a touchdown. It’s possible the Niners bid farewell to Robinson as part of final roster cuts, but $2 million in guaranteed money makes that seem unlikely. If anything, San Francisco keeps Robinson around one more year as depth insurance before bidding farewell in 2027.”
Substance Abuse Issues Date Back to College
One look at Robinson’s lengthy career — he’s headed into his 11th NFL season — tells the story of a talented player dealing with substance abuse issues dating back to 2013, when he was a freshman at the University of Florida.
Robinson was suspended twice as a freshman for testing positive for marijuana use and was suspended 4 times in 3 years before he left school with 1 year of eligibility remaining to enter the 2016 NFL draft.
Selected by the Chiefs in the 4th round (No. 126 overall), Robinson played the 1st 6 seasons of his career in Kansas City, where he had a then-career-high 32 receptions for 449 yards and 4 touchdowns in 2019 as he helped the Chiefs win their 1st Super Bowl in 50 years.
Robinson played in another Super Bowl with the Chiefs the following season and signed a 1-year, $1.18 million free-agent contract with the Las Vegas Raiders in March 2022 but was released at the end of training camp. He wound up playing for the Baltimore Ravens in 2022.
He played for the Los Angeles Rams in 2023 and 2024 on a pair of 1-year contracts but closed his time there with 2 DUI arrests in 3 months — 1st in November 2024 then again in January 2025.
Robinson’s Career Year Led Him to 49ers
Fortunately for Robinson, his DUI arrests coincided with the best season of his career.
In 2024, Robinson started all 17 regular-season games for the Rams with 31 receptions for career highs of 505 receiving yards and 7 touchdowns.
At 31 years old, if Robinson can put together another season like that or even come close to that in 2026, it’s a safe bet he’ll continue chugging along — the Fort Valley, Georgia, native will have approximately $23.2 milion in career earnings following the 2026 season.
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