One of the most impactful moves the Atlanta Falcons made under Kevin Stefanski was not retaining offensive coordinator Zac Robinson on his coaching staff. To put it simply, the Falcons' offense was not cutting it, and Robinson had virtually no idea how to utilize the elite personnel at his disposal.
Stefanski replaced him with one of his guys in Tommy Rees, who while inexperienced as a play-caller, will be running things Stefanski's way. It's his system, so you should expect more play-action looks and Michael Penix Jr. and Tua Tagovailoa to line up under center rather than out of the pistol in 2026.
However, Falcons fans aren't exactly devoid of their former play-caller just yet. After his unofficial firing, the 39-year-old was hired as the offensive coordinator of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, so he has two different opportunities to prove Stefanski wrong for allowing him to leave Atlanta without a fight.
Zac Robinson will make his return to Atlanta in Week 8 of the 2026 season
The first of those two matchups comes in Week 8, the week after Raheem Morris will make his return to Mercedes-Benz Stadium as the defensive coordinator of the San Francisco 49ers. And like his former boss, Robinson's first matchup against his former team will also mark his return to Atlanta.
The Dirty Birds will host Robinson and the Bucs on Nov. 1 at 1:00 p.m. ET. Hopefully his Halloween hangover extends a little longer, but even if it doesn't, this is nothing to be worried about. He was unable to maximize the talent at his disposal in Atlanta, so I'm sure the same will happen in Tampa Bay.
There is no world in which a Falcons' offense that has Bijan Robinson, Drake London, and Kyle PItts should rank 24th in the NFL in EPA per play. The Arizona Cardinals started Jacoby Brissett for most of 2025 and they had a higher EPA per play than the Falcons did. Play-calling, not QB play, was the issue.
Robinson was able to call a solid offense with Kirk Cousins starting, but was never able to develop Michael Penix Jr. into the elite signal-caller he had (and still has) the upside to be. He has just as much talent at his disposal and a better QB in Baker Mayfield, so he could send Falcons fans a message.
If you count the bad blood between Stefanski and Mayfield from their time together in Cleveland, it perfectly works out that this matchup will have multiple intriguing revenge angles, but of course, the NFL failed to schedule it on primetime. But that doesn't mean the matchup will hold any less weight.
They'll face off again in Week 16 in a game that could help decide the NFC South champion, but the Week 8 matchup is more intriguing because it's first. This seemingly unimportant Sunday afternoon game will be his first chance to prove himself to his old team and re-establish himself as one of the brightest names in coaching circles, while Penix can confirm his OC was the problem if he starts.
You already know Robinson has this one circled on his calendar. He's looking to prove that the Falcons were wrong for firing him and that the last two seasons meant something-- and to let Stefanski know that the play-caller he was looking for was right under his nose the entire time.
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