New Bucs OC Zac Robinson Talks Offensive Philosophy

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers hired former Atlanta Falcons OC Zac Robinson to take over as offensive coordinator from Josh Grizzard, and he greeted the media for the first time in his new role on Tuesday.

Robinson talked about his relationship with Baker Mayfield, how he plans to utilize Tampa Bay's skill players and the process that got him to Tampa Bay, but he also talked a little bit about the type of offense he'll bring to Tampa Bay in 2025.

Robinson learned under Rams head coach Sean McVay, and the offense he brings to Tampa Bay will be similar to the last few schemes that have come through the building — with a few notable differences. Here are three concepts he talked about on Tuesday, and what they could mean for the Bucs offense:

The pistol formation

Robinson was somewhat notorious for his use of the pistol formation in Atlanta, ranking No. 1 in the league with 37.8% usage in 2024 and 36.9% usage in 2025, per Sumersports. Robinson has drawn some ire from fans and pundits alike for living in this formation so often, and he was asked if he planned to use this formation frequently in Tampa Bay as well.

"We won't dive too much into that. Obviously, we're tailoring everything to your personnel and what you believe is the best way to move the football and there's definitely some advantages to that, working out of the pistol," Robinson said. "My background comes from [Rams' Head Coach] Sean [McVay] and true run-and-pass marriage, underneath the center, all those things that come with that. Obviously, we'll pick our spots with what that looks like exactly and we'll find out once we kick it off in September."

Robinson's noncommittal answer might concern some people, as his usage of this formation has been criticized for its predictability and its tendency to limit the offense. Robinson could peel off of it with a more mobile quarterback like Baker Mayfield, however, so it will be interesting to see how the offense is formatted once training camp gets underway.

Pre-snap motion

Robinson used pre-snap motion the fourth-most in the NFL in 2024 and the most in the NFL in 2025, per SumerSports, using it 62.43% of the time in 2024 and 65.65% in 2025. Pre-snap motion has been a huge trend in the modern NFL and allows offenses to indicate man or zone defenses, isolate players to favorable matchups and strengthen certain sides of the offensive line.

Robinson aims to continue using pre-snap motion at a high rate, but he doesn't want to use it lightly.

"We're not just going to motion — You've got to have the right intent behind it," Robinson said. "But you talk to a defensive coach, the thing that they want you to do is line up in static formations, typically normal width, and they can just tee off on it... the more that we can create leverage advantages in the run game as well, or manipulate second level defenders in the run game, pass game."

Another part of the equation is using it in a way that players are comfortable. It can be a lot on an offense, especially on the road, and Robinson said he wants to be more aware of that as a playcaller in 2026 with the Buccaneers.

"We'll always use that as an advantage, but never to slow the players down," Robinson said. "There's definitely times I look back in terms of times you got to be better is like, you're playing on the road, what type of motion, snap points? What are you asking the quarterback to do, knowing he might be on a silent cadence if it's a third down in the shotgun? So you're always doing it for a reason. But I'm definitely a big believer in all those things that come with it, and the issues that it can present for the defense."

12/13 personnel

Robinson started out in Atlanta in 2024 running mostly 11 personnel (one running back, one tight end and three receivers), but that changed in 2025. Robinson used 12 personnel (one running back, two tight ends and two receivers) 10.4% of the time in 2024, but that percentage skyrocketed to 38.2% in 2025. The change came at a time when McVay started experimenting with 12 and 13 personnel (one running back, three tight ends and one wide receiver) all year, and other teams are hopping on the trend of heavier sets.

Robinson doesn't know if this trend will continue, but he isn't afraid to use varied personnel once again in Tampa Bay this coming season.

"You know, it'll be interesting to see in the offseason, and then when you get back into the season, just [how] are people kind of handling those things," Robinson said. "It starts with your personnel, first and foremost... you know, you're watching base defense, you're watching nickel defense, you're watching all those things. It's like, okay, what are our advantages? What are we trying to live in this week? Or is it going to be a mixture? Or maybe it's going to be more 13."

There's another element to using more tight ends that not a lot of coaches have talked about. Running with three wide receivers tires them out quickly, and with increasingly complex route assignments and tougher defenses, giving those wideouts a break in favor of tight ends could be very beneficial.

"And 11 personnel, if you got three receivers that are rolling, those guys are going to get tired," Robinson said. "We did in Atlanta '24 actually, the same thing, like our three receivers played a ton of snaps, and they kind of felt it this year."