A’Shawn Robinson is bringing his ‘hard hat and lunch pail’ to Giants

The New York Giants activated veteran free agent defensive lineman A’Shawn Robinson (knee) off of the PUP list on Monday, in time for him to face the team that drafted him — the Detroit Lions — this week in practice and possibly in the preseason game in Detroit on Friday night.

Robinson was signed to a one-year, $8 million deal this offseason by the Giants after spending the past three seasons with the Los Angeles Rams, where he won a Super Bowl two seasons ago.

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“Great group of guys, they work hard. I wanted to be a part of something special, so I decided to come here,” Robinson told reporters.

Robinson, 28, was drafted out of Alabama by the Lions in the second round of the 2016 NFL draft. He played four seasons in Detroit before signing as a free agent with the Rams in 2020.

The Giants brought Robinson in to augment a poor run defense that was 31st in the NFL in 2022, allowing 5.3 yards per attempt.

Robinson is healthy now and was asked on Monday why he was on PUP to start camp.

“Why did I end up on PUP? That’s something you should ask the trainers, I don’t know,” he said. “That’s nothing for me. I’m just here to ball.

“I feel great. I feel fantastic. Happy to get this opportunity and to work. I’m at work, I’m a hard-hat guy. I’ve got my lunch pail, and I got my hard hat.”

That’s good news for the Giants as Robinson played the last three seasons next to the great Aaron Donald, who is widely considered one of the best interior defensive linemen in NFL history.

“I learned a lot,” Robinson said of his experience with Donald.  “I learned how to work. I learned how to keep that same main frame of mind. I learned how hard it is to be where he is at and what you’ve got to do to get where he is at. It’s a tough task but it’s something that you can do.”

Robinson said he chose the Giants in free agency because of the talent and tenacity he’s seen along the defensive front.

“I love that every person is going to fight, they are going to dig, claw,” he said of the group that consists of veterans Leonard Williams, Dexter Lawrence, and Rakeem Nunez-Roches.

“They are going to bring their hard hat and lunch pail every day. It’s not about what we see in the future, it’s about controlling the now and being where your feet are so being where your feet are, you’ve got to be dependable, got to be accountable, got to be tough, got to be smart,” he said.