Though the Las Vegas Raiders can’t make anything official until after the Super Bowl, Klint Kubiak is planning to be the team’s next head coach. It’s been a long road for him to get here, but a Super Bowl run with the Seattle Seahawks finally got his name in head coaching searches.
The Raiders appeared to favor Kubiak from the beginning and remained patient as other teams filled their head coach openings. There was a risk that the team would be in serious trouble if they passed over other candidates only for Kubiak to turn them down.
Luckily, that won’t be the case. Perhaps Kubiak’s best career move to this point was spending a year as the passing game coordinator for the San Francisco 49ers. He clearly learned a lot from head coach Kyle Shanahan. He was only there for a year, but he left a strong impression on star running back Christian McCaffrey. He had some high praise for Kubiak after the news of his hiring.
“Klint’s amazing, man,” McCaffrey told former Raiders linebacker Kirk Morrison. “I got a little bit of time with him, and the whole Kubiak family … it’s a special family. He’s somebody that’s poised, under control, but he’s a killer. Fun to spend a couple of years with him. He deserves all of it. I’m so pumped for him.”
Raiders Receive ‘B-‘ for Kubiak Hiring
Last year, the Raiders went hard after Ben Johnson, but ended up having to settle with Pete Carroll. The team wasn’t totally set on hiring a head coach with an offensive background, but they did seem to favor it.
From a pure offensive playcalling perspective, Kubiak was the top first-time head coach candidate on the market. Ralph Vacchiano of FOX Sports graded all the head coaching hires, and he gave the Raiders a “B-.”
“The Raiders can afford to take that chance, though, assuming they are patient with the 38-year-old,” Vacchiano wrote. “They are a few years away from contending and Kubiak’s primary job will likely be to develop quarterback Fernando Mendoza, the presumptive top pick of the 2026 NFL Draft. What Kubiak did in Seattle surely caught the Raiders’ attention, but don’t discount his coaching lineage. He’s worked under his father, Gary Kubiak, as well as Kevin Stefanski and Kyle Shanahan. A lot of offensive knowledge has been passed down to him.
“Whether he can handle the big job remains to be seen. But if he can develop the new quarterback, he’ll be off to a heck of a start.”
Kubiak Still Has a Lot to Prove
Kubiak is a very good hire for the Raiders, but he still has a lot to prove. It’s clear he’s a very good offensive playcaller, but so was Josh McDaniels.
What’s important for Kubiak is that he’s able to put together a strong staff and lead the team. He has a reputation for being a bit more reserved with his personality, but that doesn’t mean he can’t be a leader. That’s going to be the biggest thing to watch with him this season. Does he have the leadership traits to command a locker room?
Christian McCaffrey Has Strong Message for Klint Kubiak After Raiders News