The Las Vegas Raiders have finally sealed the deal with Klint Kubiak as their next head coach. They had to be patient waiting for him as he coached the Seattle Seahawks in the Super Bowl.
Luckily, any worry that he’d back out of the job at the last minute was unfounded. He’s been announced as the next head coach of the Raiders and is ready to hit the ground running.
Kubiak proved his merit as an offensive coordinator this season. The Seahawks had one of the best offenses in the NFL, and while the defense carried them in the Super Bowl, Kubiak had the offense consistently moving the ball.
He’s got a ton of potential as a head coach, but the Raiders are a different beast. No team has hired and fired more head coaches since 2002. There’s almost no way they don’t give him more time than Pete Carroll, but he’s going to have to overcome a lot of dysfunction.
Jeff Howe of The Athletic spoke to an NFL executive who is a big fan of Kubiak as a coach, but is a bit worried about the Raiders as a franchise.
“From a football mind, an OC, Klint is a stud,” the executive told Howe. “I think Klint will do great. Really good human, and he’s going to work his butt off. But there are institutional issues in Vegas.”
Kubiak Has His Work Cut out for Him
Kubiak is the youngest head coach the Raiders have hired since Lane Kiffin in 2008. The plan is likely to be more patient and methodical with his tenure.
The Raiders haven’t won a playoff game since 2002 and have been one of the most dysfunctional franchises in all of sports. It’s going to take a huge effort to turn the franchise around.
“The Raiders have fired four head coaches since 2021,” Howe wrote. “They had a new general manager in place at the start of the past three seasons. The roster has been constructed by too many people with too many different visions in too short a time — it’s fair to wonder if they need a total teardown before getting into the rebuild.
“They do have the No. 1 pick in the draft, so the Raiders have the right of first refusal with Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza. Kubiak should suit Mendoza’s playing style, so that’s a nice start. But the finish line is a long, long way down the road.”
Raiders Need to Give Kubiak Time
The Raiders have not been patient at all with head coaches. Kubiak is a coach who likely could’ve gotten a number of head coaching jobs this offseason, so he’s not somebody the team had to settle on as they did with Carroll last year.
The Raiders have to be patient with Kubiak. It’s hard to imagine he’ll lead the team to the playoffs next season. The roster needs a ton of work, and there’s likely a rookie quarterback coming in. Kubiak needs at least three full years to show what he can do. This time around, it does seem like the Raiders are committed to a long-term plan.
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