Play-caller
- Calls plays: Zac Robinson, OC — NEW; confirmed ("new play caller Zac Robinson" — CBS Sports fantasy, 2026; buccaneers.com introductory-presser coverage, Jan 2026). Hired 2026-01-22 after two seasons as ATL's OC/play-caller (NFL.com/ESPN, 2026-01-22). Mayfield "made a significant push" for the hire (ESPN, Jan 2026). Coaching-change protocol (methodology §9) applied: all TB 2025 tendency stats below are Grizzard's and void for 2026 projection.
- Tenure with team: Year 1 · Prior relationship with QB1: LAR passing-game coordinator/QB coach during Mayfield's late-2022 Rams stint (NFL.com, Jan 2026); Robinson is Mayfield's 4th OC in 4 TB years (Canales '23, Coen '24, Grizzard '25, Robinson '26). Robinson and Coen are close friends from the McVay staff — reporting projects the 2026 offense to look more like Coen's 2024 TB offense than Grizzard's 2025 (pewterreport/buccaneers.com, 2026).
Last 3 play-calling stops (skip non-calling years — LAR 2022-23 was a non-calling PGC role):
| Stop (team, yrs) | PROE | Neutral pass% | Sec/play (neutral) | Motion% | PA% | 11 / 12 / 21% | Condensed% | RB tgt share | WR1 TS | Inside-10 pass% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ATL 2025 | +3.85, 2nd (statrankings.com, fetched 2026-07-07); raw pass 57.2%, 63.5 plays/gm, EPA/play −0.008 (nflverse pbp_summary, pulled 2026-07-07) | UNVERIFIED | UNVERIFIED | 53.0% (FTN is_motion, all charted plays, n=1,363 — nflverse join, pulled 2026-07-07; note: ATL.md quotes 63.8% via an alternate computation — treat as high-motion band either way) | 20.6% /dropback (n=617) | 37.6 / 36.5 / 7.6 (+9.4% 13-pers — extreme multi-TE tilt, roster-shaped by Pitts) | UNVERIFIED | 22.9% (119/519 team tgt — nflverse receiving.csv) | Pitts (TE) led at 22.7%; London 21.6% in 12 gm (~26%+ per-game in his starts) | UNVERIFIED |
| ATL 2024 (first year calling; Cousins 14 starts → Penix last 3) | UNVERIFIED (2024 tables not in data/; web sources not located as of 2026-07-07) | UNVERIFIED | UNVERIFIED | UNVERIFIED | UNVERIFIED | UNVERIFIED | UNVERIFIED | UNVERIFIED | UNVERIFIED | UNVERIFIED |
| — (no third calling stop) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Read: A McVay-tree caller who ran a top-2 PROE (+3.85) even with a compromised QB room in 2025 — pass-tilted by instinct, quick-rhythm timing throws, PA near the high band, and a healthy 22.9% RB target share that made Bijan a target hog. His extreme 12/13-personnel usage in ATL was Pitts-shaped, not dogma: in Tampa the bodies are three starting-caliber WRs (Egbuka/Godwin/McMillan) plus one TE (Otton), so expect 11-personnel to rebound well above ATL's 37.6% while the RB-target and PA/motion signatures travel. Public comments stress "added emphasis on the ground attack" and using Mayfield's mobility/bootlegs (buccaneers.com, May-June 2026) — read that as balance restoration, not a run-first identity. Year-1 install drag applies: slower pace and simpler menus early, truer tendencies by midseason.
Scheme family
- Run scheme: Wide/outside zone base (McVay tree) with gap/counter mix — RB profiles that fit: one-cut, lateral-burst backs. Bucky Irving is an ideal fit; Gainwell fits the zone/space role; Tucker is the downhill/short-yardage change-up. Reporting confirms an added ground-game emphasis under Robinson with Mayfield boot/keeper elements attached (buccaneers.com, May 2026).
- Pass-game family: Shanahan/McVay tree — quick-rhythm timing throws, PA (~20%+), motion in the 50%+ band, YAC-friendly intermediate in-breakers. Implications: slot volume is real and schemed (Godwin's peak-usage archetype), mid aDOT, RB targets healthy (22.9% at ATL 2025), option-route/YAC profiles gain. In ATL Robinson leaned 12/13-personnel because of Pitts; in TB expect an 11-personnel rebound — which keeps three WRs on the field and gives the WR3 role (McMillan/Tez Johnson/Hurst) actual fantasy oxygen.
