Zac Robinson - Head Coach, buccaneers Event: Press Conference | Date: 2026-09-10 | Full transcript (primary source).
Zac Robinson, Head Coach of the Buccaneers, addressed the media during a press conference on September 10, 2026, as the team prepares for the upcoming NFL season. The press conference focused on the team's training camp experiences and the anticipation surrounding their first game of the year.
Transcript
Robinson: How are you guys doing? It's good. Good.
Robinson: Yeah, it's a great time of the year. You've been working, you know, since the spring. You've got a ton of reps and OTAs. When you look at training camp, it's been over like 2,000 reps, you know, that you've accumulated over time. And so it's been really great to first off, you know, install the scheme, of course, but just get to know the guys and like it's an awesome group to just be around every single day. And us as coaches, there's no more enjoyment than just watching these guys go play on Sunday. So that's what we're excited about. Obviously, we'll do our part as coaches to make the proper adjustments and the things that we need to need to do to win the game. But we're just excited to see those guys cut it loose and you know, Bucky and these guys, they've been practicing great and it's going to be a lot of fun to just, like you said, just kind of see how it plays out. Week one is always a mystery. There's always, you know, hey, do they have new stuff? What do they have going? There's a lot of adjustment on the fly. So it'll be a lot of fun. But I'm just excited to see this group play. They're ready to roll and it's going to be a fun day.
Unknown: You've played against Todd in the Buccaneers a couple times with the Atlanta Falcons, but going up against that defense every day in training camp, how does that prepare you and Baker and the guys for the myriad of things the teams can throw at you because he's so versatile?
Robinson: You got to be ready for everything at all times, which it makes you work through a lot of things that maybe you wouldn't have to work through until week 12 when something showed up. And so you get to see a ton of defense, a ton of different looks. It's definitely challenging on the quarterbacks. It's challenging on the protection. It can be challenging to run the football with, you know, how sturdy they are up front. So we got a lot of great work against them. There's some good back and forth, which is a sign of a good team. And it was a lot of fun to compete against them every day. The defense brought juice made us better. We hope that we made them better as well. But, but yeah, it's a, it's a challenging defense to face every single day. And I was certainly glad once we were done practicing them against them for training camp, now that we're on the cards and scout team and everything, it kind of ease your mind a little bit.
Unknown: What do you think the strength of your offense will be with this group? What do you guys, what do you think you'll do well? Are you going to try to do everything obviously?
Robinson: Yeah, I think the versatility stands out. I mentioned it a couple of times, but the versatility of the offensive line, everything starts with those guys up front. They've, they've done a great job, great having Tristan back out there and seeing the full collection of everybody working together. But those guys get the thing going from a physicality standpoint and their versatility and then just the mix of the skill guys has been really cool to just, you know, see it come together. Of course, we would have loved to get, you know, more reps with everybody together with, you know, the JMAX and the Maximus time and Cade and Tez, you know, but, you know, Ted Hurst got a bunch of reps. And so we kind of got to see some stuff from that. But yeah, I'm excited to just see the whole thing kind of come together and those guys just cut it loose and play and play free and enjoy just getting to play games again. That's why these guys do it. And we're certainly excited to see them cut it loose.
Unknown: Jason, looking at bangles on Sunday, obviously every defensive line in the NFL plays very good football with Dexter Lawrence. When you have a game record like that in the interior, what can you do to try and slow the downer stop?
Robinson: Yeah, you got to account for him at all times. He's very disruptive for how big he is, the athleticism and the pop that he has snap in and snap out from a pass road standpoint, from a run game standpoint. He's got everything. He's got every tool. So, you know, it's a great challenge for our guys. Obviously, you know, it's up to us to keep mixing up different looks and whatnot. But yeah, he's a handful up front. I know our guys are excited for the challenge.
Unknown: What can you tell us about your relationship with Baker? The fact that, you know, it's a lot of people say, oh, if you would have played with a chip on your shoulder, oh, but he gets his new deal. Every player that we talked to old line was in here. Now that you've been with him, what can you tell us maybe that we might not see that you see with Baker?
Robinson: Yeah, I would say whether he got the new deal, you know, fired up for him, you know, he deserves it. Nobody deserves it more. I mean, he's just everything what football is all about. And obviously what he stands for the organization, his teammates, is he's one-on-one. And so we're excited that that got done, of course. But I don't know if it really would have made a difference, to be honest. I couldn't tell from the day that training camp started when, you know, the contract negotiations were over. He was the exact same guy. He was the same guy when he came in the next day with a new contract. Of course, we were able to rib him a little bit about it and, you know, have some fun with it. But I really, Baker is the same guy from what I've known him in LA to now, even obviously a little bit closer now. But I couldn't tell a difference with any frustrations, anything. He was just out there playing ball. He's, you know, joking around with his teammates all the time. He's, you know, fun in the quarterback room, just keeps things light. And when he needs to turn it on, he turns it on. So to be honest, I don't know how much different it would have made, but it's certainly a relief, I'm sure, to him as well to get something done.
Unknown: When Ted Hurst was drafted, I think Jason Ladd even said, the thought was, yeah, bring him along slowly, you know, Georgia State, but we've got lots of receivers. But you mentioned he got a lot of reps and he produced and we saw him against Jacksonville and against top corners. Can he play a bigger role right off the bat than maybe even you anticipated?
Robinson: Yeah, we'll see where he's at, you know, obviously when the lights are on and that's when it'll count. But he's shown that from his college days to now, I mean, he just goes out and plays and nothing's too big, no matter who he's matched up with, whether it's against our defense or some of the guys in the, you know, the Jets game, he's playing against some of their starters and Brandon Stevens, some of those guys have been good corners for a long time. So, you know, it'll be interesting to see just how everything plays out with him. He's done an outstanding job from a mental standpoint. That's the always the unknown is just, all right, how much can these guys absorb in a short amount of time? It's a lot of verbiage. It's a lot of new stuff. And he's done a great job really from that rookie minicamp. We were impressed with just how much he was able to pick up in a short amount of time. And then you look at where he started from training camp, you know, sometimes guys can lose sight of some things when they have that summer break, you know, took a little bit to get going once we got back from training camp and then really from like week two and on, I mean, he's just continuing to ascend and he's doing a great job. It's great that Baker got a bunch of reps with him to feel kind of the movement and the different type of throws that you can activate with him out there. So I'm excited for Ted, you know, excited for all those guys, but he's done an outstanding job all training camp up to now.
Unknown: So you know, you have plenty of weapons in Atlanta, but all the weapons that you have here with this offense, how excited are you to just kind of see how Baker can disperse it to all of these different guys?
Robinson: Yeah, it's exciting. I mean, it's, you know, when you put together game plans, you got multiple guys, you know, in mind that can get involved. Obviously, the two backs have had a really good training camp. Those guys have fed off each other. They got a really cool relationship, you know, on the field, off the field. The receivers have done a great job, the tight ends, mentioned the offensive line, and then we got a cool quarterback room that's kind of gelled together, you know, with Jalen and Easton coming in. So it's a lot of fun to try to piece things together and, you know, get guys touches and then shoot some games. One guy might get this amount just based on what the coverage is or based on how they're playing us and, you know, where the ball gets distributed is based on coverage and the quarterback making the decisions and going with it. But it's definitely a lot of fun to just kind of piece it all together and we're excited to see it come to life.
Unknown: Zach, just curious what you've noticed from Chris Godwin, Jr. throughout camp and, you know, his veteran presence and someone that Baker can rely on in big moments.
Robinson: Yeah, he's a total stud, human being, football player. I mean, you guys know, no CG. He's, he'll probably go down as one of my all-time favorite guys to be around. I've been around him just a short amount of time. So, yeah, he means a lot to this organization clearly from his career here and just his training camp was impressive, like seeing him come back from the injuries where he's at right now. He's moving around great. He's at a great training camp. Obviously, Baker has a ton of trust in him to throw in some tight windows and tight coverage. He's got strong aggressive hands, all those things and then the stuff that we haven't been able to see is its ability with the ball in his hands to break tackles and do the things that he does. So, yeah, I've been really impressed just with him as a person. He's a, you know, lead by example and then when he speaks up, you know, guys listen for sure. So, he's been awesome to just get to know and then he had a great training camp. It's fun to see him rolling.
Unknown: It's the first time in a long time the starters on the O-line have all been together. Just how much of an asset will that be for you all come Sunday?
Robinson: It's huge. Yeah, I know. It's been a long time coming for those guys, you know, even though was not here last year, you know, seeing it from afar and seeing the how much movement was required up front with Graham playing tackle and, you know, they just never were together. So, getting Tristan back out there now and seeing those guys collectively work. It reminds you of the 24 tape just throwing on the 24 tape and seeing how in sync they were. They're working, working well together. They were playing extremely physical. It was, it was impressive the watch and so you're getting kind of a glimpse of that in practice and just can't wait to see those guys in real game action.
Unknown: Second is former quarterback Zach Taylor had a summer here in Tampa and you, I know you didn't plan a really good game, but you had three years of your life there in Cincinnati as a player. What you remember of that? What that time means to you?
Robinson: Yeah, it was it was a cool time. I, you know, was able to spend like mentioned three years there. I was on the practice squad just fighting my life off hoping to stay another day. But it was it was a cool organization. Didn't know much about the city of Cincinnati when I first got there, ended up loving it and, you know, have some great long lifelong friends that I still stay in contact with. Some Clinton, Clinton Boling is one of them and a bunch of guys that it was a cool collection of players that was assembled there and, you know, Andy Dalton still, you know, close friend to this day. So it was a really cool moment. Obviously never got any game action, but being in that organization, they handled things the right way and it was it was it was definitely a fun time to remember back on and looking forward to going back there.
Unknown: Second, you're known as a cool, even keeled kind of guy. So you had a lot of success with you had a lot of success with the Rams organization, not as much success in terms of making the playoffs in Atlanta. And then this team didn't make the playoffs last year. How hungry are you to get back to the postseason?
Robinson: 100% I mean, that's why we all do this. You know, players coaches, there's a bottom line business, no matter what happens. Nobody cares what your record was, what happened, you know, if you don't make the playoffs, nothing matters. And so definitely, you know, it's tough to miss the playoffs by a game each year. Same thing, you know, with the guys, you know, from the from last season's team. So you feel the eagerness and a hungry team on both sides of the football. But yeah, shoot, we're looking forward to cutting this thing loose and seeing where this thing can take it and knowing that is a long season, the ebbs and the flows of the season. You got to roll with it the weekly ups and downs. I'm looking forward to seeing us handle adversity when we need to handle adversity and all the things that come with playing in the NFL, knowing that every single game is tough. But we're definitely all eager to just get out there and let the chips fall where they may and just take it a day at a time.
Unknown: You mentioned versatility on this offense. Is there anyone in specific that's really stepped up and been willing to try new things in this team?
Robinson: Gosh, all of them, you know, like I think mention the backs. I mean, the versatility between both of those two guys and how interchangeable they can be has been a lot of fun to just see up close. But really they're the receivers, the tight ends like Kate Otten is always had from afar, just appreciation for the way he plays the game and he's got a great feel and just has some separation tools that are very savvy for, you know, for a tight end. So, yeah, it's hard to really pinpoint a specific guy. They've all done a great job, but, you know, the backs, you know, with Kenny and Bucky, that's been pretty fun.
Unknown: America in jail and miss some time. All right. At the end of training camp. I know they're out there now. We'll see what happens on Sunday. But how quickly can they catch up? Knowing that they had a good foundation before they had to.
Robinson: Yeah. Yeah. The good thing, like I said, the good thing is they have some experience J Mac, you know, going into his third year, know the system, you know, has been tweaked and whatnot this season, but he's a smart football player, you know, but it is hard to not play football and you need to play football to get better. And so I think a lot of that is just getting the reps again, getting their feedback under him, you know, seeing the ball in tight windows and, you know, all the things that happen in those split seconds from an instinct standpoint, you know, it takes a little bit of time to get that stuff back, but they're moving around great and we'll kind of see where we're at.
Unknown: You mentioned the 2020-14. I know you and Liam are certainly really good friends and and that was the best version of the Buccaneers in recent, you know, times in terms of running the ball and point protection, all that. How much of that did you kind of study in the offseason and look at and I know you've got your own spin on things, your own plays, but but how much of a peak did you take it and look at that and say, that was successful?
Robinson: Yeah, I've watched all those games, watched all the games from last year. You can kind of compare contrast, you know, but it was, you know, it's easier to see with the collection of guys over here. Obviously, Mike, you know, was on that 2020-14 and a lot of things went through him. So that part is a little bit different, but but yeah, it's it's an impressive group when they're all clicking and rolling together. But yeah, I was definitely able to, you know, see some of those things and maybe some stuff that we didn't have, you know, in LA or Atlanta that was brought here, you know, whether it was from Dave or it was Liam, you know, some of the new tweaks that were added that just naturally come up with year-to-year just based on your players. So that was it was cool to just look at all of it and kind of, you know, tailored our own way and keep some stuff and maybe change some verbiage with this or add this and you know, it's a lot of work from the coaches. The coaches, you know, we hunkered down there for the spring and even through training camp to try to figure out what we wanted to look like. You also know that week one to week eight could look completely different. The Rams 13 personnel took off in whatever week that week six weren't even playing in 13, but they were forced to and then the next thing you know, that thing takes off. So knowing that you have to have some flexibility and ability to adjust in this league based on personnel or based on what you end up being good at that you might not think you were going to be good at. So that's a fun part of it, but we're looking forward to kind of putting it all together.
Unknown: Zach, when you look out of Mecca, he recently shared how much more confident he is entering a second season. How confident are you based on what you've seen in camp in the preseason that he can get involved and get hot early on?
Robinson: Yeah, extremely. Mecca is just a really good football player. He's been a great football player from the time studying him at Ohio State. You just saw somebody that was very instinctive. You know, the skill set speaks for himself, but football makes sense to him. He knows the ins and outs of the scheme. Quarterbacks reads. I don't know. He might know the run blocking schemes better than most receivers do. Knows defenses. Knows leverage. Knows how to use leverage to his advantage. So everything he does from a preparation standpoint sets him up to just go play free and play fast. And that's what's been really cool to see with Nick. Awesome. Appreciate it, guys.
