Charles Robinson had been synonymous with NFL coverage at Yahoo Sports for more than two decades. After being let go in May, he will continue to write about the league—his way.
Earlier this month, he announced the launch of NFL Blue Book on Substack. While the concept is still evolving, Robinson’s venture aims to explore, from a high-level perspective, how NFL front offices operate and build teams.
We caught up with Robinson to discuss his new project and the 2026 NFL season.
Note: This interview has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.
Why decide to go into business for yourself?
Charles Robinson: “It’s an idea I first had when I was at Yahoo. This was in 2020, and it was just one of those things I knew I couldn’t execute while I was working at Yahoo because the Yahoo job was all-encompassing. NFL Blue Book, tilting myself into covering the 32 front offices in the league, I just knew it would be a job that was probably busier than the Yahoo job. And so I put it on the back burner, and I thought to myself, maybe I’ll get an opportunity to do this; maybe I won’t. And then when I parted ways with Yahoo, a lot of people reached out to me. Quite a bit of the advice I got was: ‘Look, if there’s something you want to do, don’t necessarily jump into mainstream media again. Think about it. Just stop and think about what you really love to cover, what really fascinates you about journalism. It doesn’t even have to really be the NFL, and consider maybe taking a shot on that.’”
Who did you talk to about this idea?
“I reached out to a number of people across the league, some GMs and higher-level executives, and I said, ‘Hey, look, I have this idea. This is what I think it could be. Is this a stupid idea? Am I crazy to think about doing this?’ Instead of apprehension, it was the opposite. A lot of people were really into it, to the point that they were starting to, without being solicited, throw out ideas.”
https://t.co/azlLUNQzse is live. As the Hall of Fame Game kicks off tonight between the @AZCardinals and @Panthers, I’ll be launching my training camp tour notebooks this afternoon, starting with my visit with the #Cardinals. I hope you’ll follow along this season and beyond!
— Charles Robinson (@CharlesRobinson) August 6, 2026
Did you also contact other sports journalists?
“Yeah, absolutely. In terms of the people I worked with, Adrian Wojnarowski was the first person I talked to early on. Pete Thamel, Dan Wetzel, Jeff Passan, and a lot of people I came up with through Yahoo. Pat Forde. And then I started to get outside that circle to other individuals, like Seth Wickersham at ESPN and Tyler Dunne, who has Go Long at Substack.”
How much did speaking with Tyler Dunne help?
“He was one of the first I talked to. I was thinking to myself, how and where do I start this? Because I wanted to start small and then grow it. … I was not really extremely up to date on how the platform worked, whether or not you retain the IP, whether you retain the content. And so, I called Tyler, and I said, ‘Hey, can we talk about this? Cause I’m very curious what the experience has really been like for you.’ He was great. He had really, really excellent advice and was very, very passionate about what he’s built there. And he’s done some fantastic work.”
So, this new project is about helping readers understand how teams operate?
“I definitely think that’s a part of it. It’s the building process. How do certain teams or general managers approach building the culture process? What is the culture that you want to have? How is that actually achieved? How do you share power within your organization? Who reports to whom?
“I would like, for all 32 teams at some point, to be able to give you a flow chart of how who reports to who in the front office. Who’s the boss? Some individuals were like, ‘Yeah, actually, I’m really interested in that. I’d like to know how this team, how that front office actually functions.’”
Tour stop #3 with the @chargers. Camp reports will start rolling in early next week! pic.twitter.com/6V3XGH9SUj
— Charles Robinson (@CharlesRobinson) July 31, 2026
Fans always want to know who actually controls the 53-man roster. How many coaches have the final say?
“That’s one of those questions I would seek to answer as best you can when it comes to 32 franchises, because, frankly, you’re not always going to get a perfect answer. Sometimes someone will contractually hold it. They’ll have it written into their contract that I am in control of the 53. Other times they won’t. So there’s a bit of ambiguity because, ultimately, it is the owner who essentially gifts that to, whether it’s the coach or the general manager, or, if it’s shared, maybe between the general manager and the head coach. Then, at the end of the process, the owner will come in and be an arbiter. But yeah, that would definitely be something that I think you would seek to answer the best you possibly can.”
Which two surprise teams could make a run to the Super Bowl?
“I wouldn’t say it’s out of nowhere, but in terms of taking that step for the AFC… The Chargers have been very successful over the last two seasons. I wouldn’t say they’ve been a Super Bowl favorite. Mike McDaniel has taken over as offensive coordinator. When you talk to him and listen to what he’s foreseeing in terms of Justin Herbert taking that next step, he’s trying to make Justin Herbert uncomfortable because he knows that a lot of growth at the quarterback position usually happens when you’re in discomfort and figuring out how to deal with it. If McDaniel can get another five or ten percent out of Justin Herbert’s performance, and again, they stay healthy, that’s a team with the dynamic blend of players and coaching, and they should, in my mind, be a Super Bowl favorite.”
What about in the NFC?
“I really, truly believe the Minnesota Vikings have a really good roster, and obviously last year was tremendously disappointing. I don’t want to say it’s been controversial, but certainly it has felt very unsettled when we’ve talked about Kyler Murray versus J.J. McCarthy. I know there are a lot of people who don’t necessarily believe that Kyler Murray could take a team to the Super Bowl. But I can tell you that the construction of that team, Brian Flores as defensive coordinator, Kyler’s ability to be dynamic, and them making the decision now when they did gives them enough runway to try to get themselves into a bit of a groove in the NFC and potentially turn themselves back into that 2024 Vikings team that we thought, with Sam Darnold, could have made a run to the Super Bowl.”
Notes from @RamsNFL camp: There’s still a sizable final hurdle before the #Rams can cement a potentially historic duo in Myles Garrett and Aaron Donald. + Blake Corum, Trent McDuffie, Max Klare, QB depth chart and more filed to https://t.co/azlLUNQ1CG…https://t.co/OYsvqVpwtYpic.twitter.com/NRasHnlD3M
— Charles Robinson (@CharlesRobinson) August 8, 2026
Aside from health and the strength of the NFC West, is there another reason the Rams won’t make it to the Super Bowl?
“(Ram general manager Les Snead) made the point that everybody’s celebrating this now, and it’s fantastic. Maybe Aaron Donald comes back into the fold, and it looks even better. But all that really means is that if we achieve a certain level and it’s not the Super Bowl, people are going to be looking at us and saying, who screwed it up? Who got something wrong? Who failed? What injury stopped it? I think they should be the prohibitive favorite in the NFC. They look freaking spectacular to me. I think Aaron Donald’s absolutely coming back. But I often go through these camps. I’m positive. I know something about a team. And then by October I’m like, ‘OK, that was completely wrong.’”
Which coach do you think is on the hottest seat in terms of losing his job?
“I’m curious to see what happens if this goes really badly for Kevin O’Connell in Minnesota. Mark Wilf, the owner, recently came out, and again, there’s a very big red flag to me. When an owner says there’s not infinite patience, that usually signals at least some level of frustration with trying to break through here. I don’t want to say it was a messy breakup. But it was certainly an awkward breakup between Kevin O’Connell and the general manager, Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, like the way it ultimately unfolded.
“So, especially if Sam Darnold and the Seahawks have another banner season, there’s going to be a lot of focus on that. I don’t think that reflects well on Minnesota overall. I don’t think you can blame all of that on Kwesi. Kevin’s going to be expected, now with Kyler Murray, to make something happen. This has got to produce.”
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