Getty Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (#15) and quarterbacks coach Mike Kafka (right).
New York Giants offensive coordinator Mike Kafka, formerly of the Kansas City Chiefs, is set to interview for the Seattle Seahawks head coach job on Friday, January 19, according to CBS Sports’ Jonathan Jones on January 17.
Giants offensive coordinator Mike Kafka will interview for the Seahawks vacant head coach position on Friday, per source.
Mike Kafka Helped Groom Patrick Mahomes
Kafka is known in Chiefs Kingdom as being one of the key players in Patrick Mahomes‘s development. After being Kansas City’s offensive quality control coach during Mahomes’s rookie season in 2017, Kafka became the team’s quarterbacks coach in 2018, which was Mahomes’s first year as the Chiefs’ starter, and held that position until 2022. He was also the team’s passing game coordinator in 2020 and 2021.
In 2022, Kafka left the Chiefs to become the OC under head coach Brian Daboll in New York. During the 2022 season, Kafka helped guide the Giants toward their playoff appearance since 2016 in large part because of the play of starting QB Daniel Jones, who set career-highs in completion percentage (67.2%), passing yards (3,205), yards per attempt (6.8), quarterback rating (62.9), rushing touchdowns (7), and had a career-low in interceptions (5), according to Pro Football Reference.
During the 2023 season, the Giants finished with a 6-11 record and missed the playoffs. Jones had just 3 total touchdowns in the first six games of the regular season before going down with a season-ending injury. However, Kafka was able to get spurts of good play from backup QBs Tommy Devito and Tyrod Taylor during the remainder of the regular season, which might have put him on the radar of teams looking for a new head coach during the 2023 hiring cycle.
Along with interviewing for Seattle’s HC job, Kafka also had an interview with the Tennessee Titans for their head coach vacancy as well on January 12.
Chiefs Set to Face Bills in AFC Divisional Round
The Chiefs, who defeated the Miami Dolphins 26-7 in the AFC Wild-Card Round, are set to face the Buffalo Bills in the AFC Divisional Round. That game will take place on Sunday, January 21 at 5:30 p.m. Central time and can be watched on CBS.
The Divisional Round will mark the second time that Kansas City and Buffalo have matched up this season. The two teams played on December 10 at Arrowhead Stadium and the result of that game was a 20-17 victory for the Bills.
Fans of either team are eagerly anticipating the game in Buffalo, which will mark the first-ever road playoff game for Mahomes.
“The media says no one is scared of the Chiefs. I disagree,” one user wrote. “You can argue with me all you want but I GUARANTEE – the Bills ARE SCARED of them. We are the boogeyman and I can’t wait until Sunday night!!”
“I’m stoked about this Chiefs vs Bills game! Wouldn’t want it any other way,” another user wrote. “It’s an exciting game every time these two teams play each other.”
“Dear Dolphins and Steelers fans We hear you and understand your pain,” another user wrote. “We Bills Mafia were also victims of elite QB play for years. Understand it’s not your fault and it’s ok to take it out on the Refs. Join us in rooting for the Bills against the State Farm Chiefs. #GoBills.”