Ryan Grubb’s first opportunity to call plays in the NFL lasted less than 12 months, and reflecting on his firing by the Seattle Seahawks earlier this year led Grubb to make some honest assessments about his offensive scheme as he enters this first season as Alabama’s offensive coordinator.
“I think it still shows you that if you don’t have the right mix of run-pass, that you’ll struggle to win the big games and the big moments,” Grubb told Tide 100.9 radio on Thursday. “Those are some things where we weren’t where we wanted to be running the football, and we need to continue to improve on that.
“It’s always a good reminder that the same thing in college and the NFL apply where balance and creativity have to meet each other each week, and find ways to be creative in the run scheme — as creative as you are in the pass game.”
The Seahawks finished 10-7 in Grubb’s only season as offensive coordinator, with Seattle ranking 21st in the NFL in scoring 20.0 offensive points per game. The Seahawks had the fifth-lowest time of possession and fifth-lowest percentage of running plays (39.2) in the NFL, with the Super Bowl-champion Eagles leading the NFL in running more than 58% of the time.
After firing Grubb, first-year Seahawks head coach Mike MacDonald said, “We want our offense to be a physical unit and dictate terms to the defense. Play complimentary football. Get the ball to our playmakers frequently and in space. Let our quarterback play fast. We were doing a lot of those things offensively, just decided to go a different direction. … It really was just an alignment thing and a vision thing, and that’s why we made the decision. It just didn’t manifest itself the way we expected. The direction the offense was going, it wasn’t the way I wanted it to go.”
MacDonald hired Grubb after his offense at Washington — led by then-Huskies coach Kalen DeBoer — led FBS in passing yards per game (355.8) from 2022-23. Washington attempted the fourth-most passes per game (41.0) and the seventh-fewest rushes per game (29.0) over those two seasons.
Grubb’s pass-heavy scheme carried over to the Seahawks, which finished his only season fifth in completion rate (69.6%) and eighth in passing yards per game (236.5).
“I think the one thing we saw was we still can throw the ball,” Grubb told Tide 100.9. “We were top five in the NFL throwing the football. … I think some of the things we learned was there’s an efficiency to our pass game, challenging nature to it. There’s complexity that every week people struggle to guard.”
However, the Seahawks’ passing offense declined as the NFL season progressed. Seattle led the NFL in passing yards per game (268.2) over the first nine weeks of the regular season, but fell to 26th in passing yards per game (200.1) over Weeks 10-18.
“For us, there’s some things you learn like some things you’re doing are really good and we should keep doing those,” Grubb continued. “Some of the things you learn like, hey, when you’re against elite defenses, these are the things that are not gonna be as good.”
The addition of Grubb has been expected to unlock some of the passing-game potential for Alabama, which ranked 104th among FBS teams last year in averaging 27.2 pass attempts per game in DeBoer’s first season. Alabama’s passing offense struggled in particular over the second half of last season, when the Tide ranked 88th in completion percentage (58.2%), 81st in passing yards per game (213.4), 102nd in passing efficiency rating (119.7) and 124th in passing touchdown to interception ratio (0.7) after October 15th.
When asked at his introductory news conference in March about his offensive style, Grubb began with the word aggressive.
“We’re gonna be aggressive,” he reiterated. “We want guys to — I think that when the players, when it works the best, the understanding that the players have that we gotta be responsible with the football, not go backwards, make sure we’re always matriculating the ball down the field, but then be ready for an opportunity to take the shot.”
Grubb expounded upon that philosophy Thursday during his Tide 100.9 interview.
“There’s kind of two ways to go about it,” Grubb said. “You obviously have to be respectful of any team you’re on, the situation you’re in offensively. The type of defense you have, controlling the football at the right times and things like that. But without question, we want people to pop our film on every week and look at it, and know that they’re going to have to defend every inch of the field. The ball at some point is going to get down that field.
“That is something that we’ve been able to do for quite a few years at a lot of different stops and making sure that our receivers and type of players you have can match that, and you certainly have that at Alabama. It’s not a stretch to say that we’re gonna be able to work some of those same thoughts and concepts.
“That really is something that we want to make sure is not just talk. When people put our film on and look at it, and they see what we’re doing, that they know they’re going to have to take care of the back end there with the DBs and have a little bit of nervous energy back there, too.
“I do think there’s a lot that plays into that, too, in the run game. The more you can do that, the more successful you can be getting the ball down the field, the better your run game is. The more times you can get them into two-high safety looks, and be able to run the ball, you’re probably gonna be pretty excited about that.”
Alabama was one of the SEC’s higher-producing running teams in 2024, but much of that production came from quarterback Jalen Milroe. The traditional running game — hand-offs to the running backs — was inconsistent and, at times, unproductive.
Grubb noted Thursday that Washington running back Dillon Johnson finished the 2023 season with 1,195 rushing yards despite the prolific passing offense led by quarterback Michael Penix. And previously in April, Grubb spoke about how he and DeBoer’s best offenses have featured a balance between run and pass, and their best games during a national championship game run at Washington featured an effective running game.
“I think physical style of play is what it takes to win championships in the SEC,” Grubb told Tide 100.9 on Thursday. “There’s a presence you can bring, just the explosiveness of being able to run the ball and control the line of scrimmage. I think that’s a whole other element that we’re really excited about.”
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