The hiring can’t officially take place until after the Super Bowl, but according to Ryan McFadden of ESPN and multiple other outlets, the Las Vegas Raiders are set to hire Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak as their new head coach.
According to McFadden, Kubiak intends to work out a deal with Las Vegas after meeting with the Raiders and the Arizona Cardinals yesterday. Kubiak will become the Raiders’ fifth full-term coach since 2021.
The Raiders interviewed a total of 15 candidates for the job, McFadden added, with minority owner and former New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and GM John Spytek leading Las Vegas through the hiring process.
This is Kubiak’s first season with Seattle as he help prepare the Seahawks offense for the Super Bowl, but he’s definitely made a major impact. The Seahawks' fierce defense got most of the publicity this season, but the offense was one of the best in the league.
Specifically, Seattle ranked third in points with 28.4 per game, and the Seahawks also ranked eighth in total yards with 351.4. Seattle also finished in the top ten in both rushing and passing yards, and several of their advanced metrics were impressive as well.
The improvement from this year to last was part of what got Kubiak hired, too. Under former offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb last year, the Seahawks finished the back half of the NFL in points, offensive efficiency and EPA, and their running game was especially anemic, landing at 28th in the league.
Stats aside, Kubiak’s biggest claim to fame so far is finishing the process of rehabilitating quarterback Sam Darnold and shepherding him through this season's playoff run. Darnold had an impressive season last year for the Minnesota Vikings, but he experienced a playoff meltdown that caused the Vikings to move on from him.
Kubiak will have his hands full in Las Vegas, as this is a full rebuild. The Raiders will almost certainly be moving on from quarterback Geno Smith, and they’re expected to draft Indiana Hoosiers quarterback and Heisman Award winner Fernando Mendoza, who will become Kubiak’s new development project.
The Raiders have the second-most cap space in the NFL to start their rebuild, according to McFadden, and they’ll likely need every bit of it to revamp the roster. Part of what doomed coach Pete Carroll this year was the fact that he overestimated the state of the roster and thought the Raiders were positioned to win right away, and instead the Raiders ended up with just three wins for the season.
The hire also represents yet another change of course for owner Mark Davis, who went from hiring the experienced older coach with a successful track record to the young guy who’s a hot candidate, with Kubiak having coached for six teams in a variety of roles. Kubiak is also a finalist for the AP’s Assistant Coach of the Year award.