There’s already a bad narrative surrounding Zac Robinson and he’s barely been with the Buccaneers

Talk about jumping the gun (pun totally intended).

Evan Winter — NFL Managing Editor
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Dec 29, 2025; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Falcons offensive coordinator Zac Robinson on the field before a game against the Los Angeles Rams at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Brett Davis-Imagn Images

Zac Robinson is the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ new offensive coordinator after a long search that included interviews with eight different candidates.

An important factor behind the decision is his familiarity with Baker Mayfield after working with him in 2022. He also blends aspects of Liam Coen’s offense into his own playbook. So, while it’s not an exact copy, there are elements Mayfield and the rest of the Bucs offense will recognize.

Robinson has incorporated his own staple into his offenses, however, and it comes in the shape of the pistol formation.

And it’s already created quite the stir before he’s even had his introductory press conference.

People are worried Zac Robinson will inundate the Bucs offense with the pistol

Per Sumer Sports, Robinson ran pistol to the point where the Atlanta Falcons led the NFL with 412 plays out of the formation in 2024 and 387 in 2025. The Falcons were efficient when deploying pistol, but they weren’t in the elite ranks and honestly, a team needs to be elite when it comes to its core staples.

Falcons’ EPA per play and ranks out of the Pistol

  • 2024: 0.107 (10th)
  • 2025: 0.089 (8th)

It’s easy to see why this is concerning because the Buccaneers ran pistol a combined 77 times over the last two seasons, per Sumer. It’d represent a major change and shift in philosophy – almost akin to learning a different offense.

However, there are multiple factors why it’s more than fair to say while yes, Robinson might increase the Bucs’ usage of pistol, he’s not going to force it on the offense and make it the core staple like he did in Atlanta.

Michael Penix Jr. was a big reason why Robinson ran so much pistol

Penix Jr., the eighth overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft and the Falcons’ supposed quarterback of the future, primarily played in pistol and shotgun formations, with the former leading the way. He had a lot of success and it was a big reason why he was able to put together a college resume that landed him in the top-10 selections despite multiple knee injuries.

Why wouldn’t Robinson want to go ahead and have an offense suited to Penix Jr.’s strengths in the early goings of his career? It’s totally logical for Robinson to create an offense he’s comfortable in so he can hit the ground running and then more elements (like under center designs) can be added as Penix Jr. develops.

There’s more credence to this idea when looking at the Rams offense in 2023. 100 plays were ran out of the pistol, which is considered moderate usage. However, when considering how little other teams use it, said 100 plays put them in top-5 of usage that year, per Sumer.

Regardless, why would Robinson all of a sudden decide on a whim it’d be a good idea to jump the usage up by four times the amount?

The answer, of course, was Penix Jr.

Plus, there had already been a “pistol foundation” set up by former Atlanta Falcons head coach Arthur Smith, who deployed the formation a league-leading 365 times in 2023. Said system helped star running back Bijan Robinson almost reach 1,000 yards and average 4.6 yards per carry in his rookie year, so again, Zac Robinson was simply leaning into the strengths of his roster.

The Bucs offense has shown it can thrive without leading the league in pistol usage and I’m sure Robinson is aware of this fact. On top of that, I’m also sure Todd Bowles thoroughly discussed the matter, along with Robinson’s vision for the Bucs offense.

And I can guarantee you, in a critical year such as 2026, Bowles wouldn’t bring on a guy who is going to turn the Bucs offense into something completely new. While Robinson may increase the usage, it’s not going to be anywhere near the heights people already believe it’ll reach.

Take a breath. Relax. Again, Robinson hasn’t even had his introductory presser, yet.

There’s still a long, long way to go, so there’s no point in getting bent out of shape over something that hasn’t even come to fruition yet. Especially when looking at the context and history behind the situation.

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