Brian Robinson has been officially designated to return to practice after suffering multiple gunshot wounds to his right leg, and that means plenty of good things for the Washington Commanders.

The hope, head coach Ron Rivera said on Monday, is for Robinson's return to be a boost for the offense, particularly in the run game. Robinson showed in training camp and the preseason that he can add another dimension to the backfield, and that is what they expect once he is officially added back to the active roster.

That last point is critical, because while it is a great sign that Robinson is back in pads and on the field, there are still some obstacles he needs to overcome. Until then, Rivera and the Commanders want to manage their expectations.

"We have to be smart about how we're gonna handle him," Rivera said. "We gotta handle those expectations. We also gotta handle, what he's gonna go through physically and mentally. It is a different set of circumstances. I don't know of any other player that I've coached that's had to go through this."

Rivera said that Robinson will "apparently not initially" have any limitations in practice. However, the team does want to see how he reacts to certain things. For example, the Commanders will have a padded practice on Wednesday, so they want to see how he handles contact.

"He'll get to bump around a little bit and see how he handles that and then we'll go from there," Rivera said.

Robinson has taken several strides in his recovery, from working through agility drills to running routes before the game against the Philadelphia Eagles. Participating in practice is a different workload, though, and the team may elect to ramp him up as opposed to letting him loose against the Titans.

It will depend on how Robinson handles the week, but when he does return to the active roster, Rivera is expecting big things from the rookie.

"We'll see how that goes," Rivera said. "I'm optimistic about it. Just in listening to everything I've heard, it's very promising. But again, as I said, the plan is to not activate him but start his clock on Wednesday and see how he does and if he continues to progress, there's a very good chance he'll be able to play on Sunday."

Here's a morning roundup of what the local and national media have to say about the Washington Commanders on Wednesday, Oct. 5, 2022. All reports, rumors and conjecture are a reflection of the media conversation and are not endorsed or confirmed by the Washington Commanders.

The reports and deals expressed in this article have not been confirmed by Washington, nor do they reflect any insider information from anyone in the front office.

• USA Today's Ivan Lambert reports on the Commanders adding depth to the offensive line.
• NBC Sports Washington's Bijan Todd writes about updates on Jahan Dotson and Chase Young.
• NBC Sports Washington's Peter Hailey writes about the Commanders' rankings in certain stat categories.
• The Athletic's Ben Standig writes about the Commanders' progress, setbacks
• The Washington Times' Matthew Paras writes about the Commanders' running game.
• The Washington Post's Nicki Jhabvala reports on injury updates.
• The Richmond-Times Dispatch's Michael Philips writes about Rivera's perspective after going 1-3.
• The Washington Post's Sam Fortier writes about the Commanders' passing game.
• The Washington Post's Candace Buckner reports on the Commanders' loss to the Cowboys.
• The Washington Post's Sam Fortier writes about the Commanders' penalties against the Cowboys.
• The Washington Post's Nicki Jhabvala writes about the Commanders falling to 1-3 after a loss to the Cowboys.
• The Washington Post's Scott Allen gives four takeaways from the Commanders' loss to the Cowboys.
• The Washington Times' Matthew Paras looks at the penalties dooming the Commanders.
• The Washington Times' Matthew Paras also looks at Ron Rivera's comments about the Commanders' slow start.

Check Out What's On Commanders.com:

• Brian Robinson designated to return to practice
• Commanders strive for sustainability after struggles with penalties
• 'I got another day to impact someone’s life’: Commanders High School Coach of the Week honoree James Ford is a role model, fighter 
• 5 takeaways from Washington's matchup with Dallas
• Commanders-Cowboys Stats & Snaps
• Instant Analysis | Commanders struggle to gain momentum in 25-10 loss to Dallas
• 3 numbers to know from Washington's Week 4 loss