There’s excitement around Klint Kubiak’s potential as the Las Vegas Raiders‘ head coach, but there are bound to be growing pains along the way. Quarterback Kirk Cousins worked with Kubiak when he was the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach of the Minnesota Vikings, so he knows the coach well.
However, things are different with him being the man in charge. So far, Cousins has been blown away by how Kubiak is operating as the head coach. The quarterback had some strong praise for Kubiak and even revealed that the Raiders’ OTAs were the best he’s participated in.
“He’s a very hard worker, very humble, he’s got a great way about him. He’s serious, there’s not a lot of time for tomfoolery,” Cousins said of Kubiak on the “Rich Eisen Show.” “I told him after OTAs, ‘Coach, this is probably the most urgent and most productive OTAs I’ve ever been a part of.’ That starts with him as a head coach. He created a sense of urgency from Day One, all the way through the 10-week program, and I thought we got a lot of work done. We’ve got a long ways to go, but we laid a good foundation.”
Kubiak Is a Man of Few Words
Kubiak is never going to be a coach to win a press conference the way Pete Carroll and Antonio Pierce were able to. He just doesn’t have that type of charisma.
That doesn’t mean he won’t be a capable head coach. Cousins doesn’t think Kubiak’s quiet demeanor is a problem because he knows exactly what he wants and is able to convey it clearly to his team.
“He doesn’t need to be a man of many words — quieter is a fair assessment,” Cousins said. “But that’s different than lacking conviction or lacking that intensity. I think his intensity, his conviction, his belief in what he’s doing, having an identity — there’s no confusion from us in the locker room of what he expects from us, what he wants our football team to look like. I would never confuse that with just being quiet. I think there’s a certainty there that’s comforting to a player.”
Can Kubiak Be the Guy for the Raiders?
The Raiders have cycled through many different head coaches over the years. Even big-name hires like Carroll and Josh McDaniels couldn’t last two seasons before getting fired.
Kubiak definitely has his work cut out for him. The Raiders have had two winning seasons since 2002. A big reason for that has been the lack of stability at head coach.
Las Vegas needs to give Kubiak time if he’s going to have success. On the surface, he appears to have the tools to be the right head coach for the Raiders. He’s stern, but players like him, and he’s a very good offensive playcaller. Plus, he’s still young and should only get better with experience.
Now, the Raiders were hoping that every coach they’ve hired over the years would be the guy, but it failed. Until Kubiak can lead a winning season, there will be questions about him. At the bare minimum, the Raiders need to give him at least two full seasons to see what he can do.
Kirk Cousins Has Strong Words on Raiders HC Klint Kubiak