Robinson excited for return to Vikings

TAMPA — For much of Josh Robinson’s four seasons with the Vikings, there was excitement leading up to the arrival of the $1.1-billion U.S. Bank Stadium, which opened last season, just as Robinson signed with the Bucs.

“I knew that was coming, knew I would miss out on opening that new stadium,” said Robinson, 26, who established himself as a special-teams leader last year with 12 tackles on coverage units and is now a specialteams captain after re-signing in the offseason. “I’m excited to go back there and compete against those guys.”

The Vikings player that Robinson has kept in closest contact with is a guy he’ll be going after Sunday — punt returner Marcus Sherels — but he’s still close with much of the Minnesota secondary, playing more as a defensive back than on special teams with the Vikings.

“It’s exciting, just because I spent some time there,” Robinson said. “Excited to go back and play against guys I competed against a lot in training camps. I’m looking forward to it.”

Robinson said he knows the Vikings’ defense well — he played under current head coach Mike Zimmer in 2014-15 — and can lend some insights to the Bucs offensive players on what they’ll face Sunday.

As special-teams captain, he was pleased to see strong play on the coverage units in Sunday’s opener, most notably Ryan Smith forcing a fumble on an ill-advised punt return by Bears rookie Tarik Cohen that was recovered by Cameron Lynch. Rookie Justin Evans also made a key tackle on kickoff return.

“I think they looked good — Ryan’s not a rookie anymore, but he does a good job making plays on special teams,” Robinson said. “Justin, we knew he was going to be an instant playmaker, a guy who can run and likes to tackle, so you knew he’d contribute.”