Scapegoat?

Can Zac Robinson really make that big of a difference for the Bucs’ offense? Well, we will find out in a few months.

Last week at the combine, Bucs coach Todd Bowles sort of winced about the shortcomings of having a rookie offensive coordinator last year, Josh Grizzard.

If you believe what Bowles was saying — Grizzard was two or three years away from hitting his stride as an NFL playcaller and that Bowles was distracted from his duties with the defense to help Grizzard out on offense — then Robinson is a step up if only because he has two seasons under his belt as an NFL playcaller.

Veteran NFL scribe Dan Pompei of The Athletic noted how the Bucs hope Robinson is the answer to last year’s offensive woes.

The Bucs are counting on new offensive coordinator Zac Robinson to make a significant difference in their entire team. Obviously they believe he will enhance the offense, and they implied he could help the defense as well by freeing up coach Todd Bowles to focus more on that side of the ball. Bowles said he had to spend too much time babysitting the offense last year with Josh Grizzard as the offensive coordinator. Grizzard was in his first year running an offense whereas Robinson was the offensive coordinator in Atlanta the past two seasons. Bowles and general manager Jason Licht also are enthused about Robinson’s experience with the Sean McVay offense. The general manager and head coach made references to similarities between Robinson and 2024 offensive coordinator Liam Coen, both of whom are McVay disciples.

There are all sorts of reasons why the Bucs’ offense went to pieces last season. Baker Mayfield, who himself was banged up, never once played behind the starting-five offensive line due to the rash of injuries. The prior season, the Bucs’ front line was at worst, the third-best line in the game.

Yeah, one can point to Grizzard being so green as an issue. Both Dave Canales and Liam Coen were first-time NFL playcallers, too, in their lone seasons with the Bucs. So Joe guesses it was just a matter of time before the law of averages caught up with the Bucs where they swung and missed on a coordinator.

But let’s be real here: If Grizzard was the millstone around the offense’s neck, well, who hired him?