Back in 2024, former Atlanta Falcons head coach Raheem Morris brought in Zac Robinson with him to Atlanta from the Rams. Most fans, including me, were infatuated with the idea that he would bring us a piece of a Sean McVay's heavy disguise/motion offense. Within McVay's offense, they used personnel packages to force defenses into base coverage, similar formations to keep a defense guessing, while relying on pre-snap motion to create more favorable matchup's and open up run lanes. Zac Robinson would bring this scheme with him but unfortunately absolutely fail to call it.
Over the two seasons under Zac Robinson, the Falcons ranked near the top of the league in pre-snap motions at 63% in 2024 and 67% in 2025, Per Jeff Kerr. While the Rams actually ranked right alongside the Falcons, even surpassing them in 2024 with an insane 76.6% motion rate according the the Rams official website. Though there was a stark difference between the two. According to multiple charts on X, the Falcons offense was highly predictable, compared to the Rams top-tier unpredictability. This meant something had to be going wrong with Zac Robinson's use of motions.
The problems started with the predictable use of motions to create blocks for run plays. If a tight end was lined up on the weak side of the formation, and started motioning towards the strong side, statistically, it was almost always a run to that side from Zac Robinson. These forms of motions giving away the play, rather than confusing the defense, and forcing communication, is what started to kill this offense. Like the mastermind of mystery that Robinson was for Atlanta, he did more to confuse his own team, than leverage the offense over the defense. Robinson's use of elaborate shifts and motions caused the Falcons to consistently play behind schedule offensively, this directly caused penalties, created easy indicators for defensive units to jump snaps, and ultimately created unnecessary pressure on the offense to execute.
Obviously, Zac Robinson's use of motions was not it for Atlanta, but the use of motions in general can be, if used correctly. These techniques, are what separated the Rams from the rest of the NFL offensively, and where Zac Robinson failed in his play-calling with Atlanta and where the new regime has succeeded, because it's been exactly what this team has been looking for play-calling wise.
The Falcons brought in Tommy Rees and Kevin Stefanski to rebuild the offense this offseason, which has been a rousing success. And this is where their success begins to take center stage, as their use of motion has been both vastly different (and more effective) than Robinson's, which is part of why this offense has been so successful these last two weeks since Michael Penix Jr. has returned.
Tommy Rees and Kevin Stefanski are using motion more effectively than Zac Robinson ever did
Sharp Analytics has the Falcons ranked around 9th with a 60% motion rate in 2026. How they've used motions through Weeks 3 and 4 is part of the secret sauce making their offense so good. First off creating easier pre-snap reads for Michael Penix Jr. is essential for that "quarterback friendly offense," as Kyle Shanahan puts it. To do this, enacting a similar receiver motion across the formation, like Sean McVay, forces the defense to declare their coverage early, giving Penix Jr., in this case, leverage. This exact type of motion is used to create one-on-ones for key receivers like Drake London.
A really nice example of this is actually the first play of the Falcons-Saints Monday Night Football game. The Falcons came out in 12 personnel, meaning two tight ends, one running back. They lined the tight ends up with one on each side of the offensive line. Right before the snap, tight end Charlie Woerner motioned towards the left side. As the ball was snapped, this gave the illusion that Atlanta was running, but they didn't. Penix Jr. pulled the ball from Bijan and ripped it to Drake London who was waiting behind the line of scrimmage on the right side. That motion gave London an opening on the screen pass and he capitalized with a first down.
Rees uses a similar overload style to force the defense into quick decisions before the snap. My previous example happened to be a pass, but that's what creates leverage over the defense. They don't really know where the ball could go. Using jet-motions to shift linebacker assignments is essential for creating favorable run lanes. If the Falcons are trying to create success off a wide zone to the right side, forcing defensive units to shift using a jet motion underneath can create more openings for the running back, since the defense has to respect the receiver, and move their linebackers. This makes it easier for lineman to move up and create a running lane. The Falcons also constantly shift bigger receivers and tight ends on and off of the interior. Tommy Rees will at times come out with three tight ends on the field, just to line up in a formation that has them out wide and visa-versa. One specific example of this happened in Week 2 against the Carolina Panthers. Falcons came out in 13-personnel, but when they hit the field Drake London was lined up in the in-line "Y" position, while tight end Charlie Woerner was on the outside "Z" spot. This created a mis-match with the linebacker and London, but before the defense could react the Falcons snapped the ball, London got open against Panthers linebacker Devin Lloyd, and the Falcons gained 15-yards on a decent Cooper Rush throw.
This is the type of unpredictability that every NFL offense needs to be successful. The feeling is insurmountable, watching Robinson now poisoning the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, as the Atlanta Falcons thrive under their new coaching staff.
Tommy Rees and Kevin Stefanski have found a home in Atlanta and while everyone celebrates this win, the new Falcons regime is looking to the next matchup against the Ravens.
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