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When Washington Commanders offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury decided to put a pause on his pursuit of an NFL head coaching job this week, he did so with the thought all of his focus needed to be on his current team and the monumental task they had in front of them.
After the Commanders shocked the No. 1 seed Detroit Lions on the road in the NFC Divisional Playoffs and their offense looked unstoppable in a 45-31 win, there might not be a hotter NFL head coach candidate than Kingsbury.
“It’s absurd to me that all of the head coach vacancies haven’t reached out to Kliff Kingsbury,” FOX Sports commentator and 4-time Super Bowl champion Rob Gronkowski said after the Commanders’ win. “He’s a QB whisperer. He knows how to connect with players.”
Kingsbury’s protege, Washington rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels, was brilliant in the win over the Lions, going 22-of-31 passing for 299 yards, 2 touchdowns and no interceptions to go with 15 carries for 52 rushing yards.
Under Kingbury’s tutelage, Daniels led the Commanders to a 12-5 record in the regular season after he was selected No. 2 overall out of LSU in the 2024 NFL draft. Kingsbury is also in his first season with the Commanders.
Washington, the No. 6 seed, will travel play the winner of the other NFC Divisional Round game between the No. 4 seed Los Angeles Rams and the No. 2 seed Philadelphia Eagles.
The NFC Championship Game will be January 26 at 3 p.m. ET on Fox.
Kingsbury Outdueled 2 Top NFL HC Candidates
Headed into the NFC Divisional Round, the 2 hottest head coaching candidates in the NFL were Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson and Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn — both of whom Kingsbury went head-to-head with and came out with a resounding victory.
Kingsbury has already been an NFL head coach — he went 28-37-1 as head coach of the Arizona Cardinals from 2019 to 2022.
“Per a source with knowledge of the situation, Kingsbury has decided to wait until the Commanders’ season ends to interview with any interested teams,” Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio wrote on January 16. ” … The urgency is to fully focus on the task at hand, which consists of playing the Lions on Saturday night. Only six days after the franchise’s first playoff win in 19 years. The Bears and Saints have submitted interview requests for Kingsbury. It’s believed the Jaguars might make a request, too. He could have been interviewed by one or more teams this week.”
Kingsbury Could Reunite With Williams in Chicago
If you wanted to put a bet on where Kingsbury might be most likely to end up, the safe money might be on the Chicago Bears, where quarterback Caleb Williams struggled to a 5-12 record as a rookie after he was selected No. 1 overall in 2024 — one pick ahead of Daniels. Kingsbury coached Williams in 2023 as an offensive analyst at USC.
“Ever since the Chicago Bears ended the Matt Eberflus era, it’s felt rather inevitable that Kliff Kingsbury will become their next head coach,” Bleacher Report’s Alex Kay wrote on January 6. ” … Chicago needs an offensive-minded head coach to jump-start a unit that oozes potential but has felt rudderless with coordinators Shane Waldron and Luke Getsy at the helm. There’s no better choice than Kingsbury, who has a long history of getting the most out of his quarterbacks and is also already familiar with Williams.”
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