The Las Vegas Raiders were reportedly set to hire Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak to serve as their sixth head coach in as many seasons. The move has yet to become official, but he confirmed the reports following the Seahawks' 29-13 victory in Super Bowl LX.
It will mark the second time this decade that Las Vegas has hired a highly touted offensive mind to serve as its head coach. Ironically, the previous coach to fit that bill was Josh McDaniels, who was on the opposing sidelines on Sunday as the New England Patriots' offensive coordinator.
Of course, Raiders fans know just how terrible McDaniels' tenure went, as he inherited a playoff team and ran it into the ground, finishing 6-11 in his first season and just 3-5 before being fired eight games into his second year.
While Kubiak and McDaniels are both offensive coordinators who have helped lead elite offenses to Lombardi Trophies, one major reason should give Raider Nation confidence that the former's tenure in Las Vegas will be much better than the latter's.
Raiders fans should feel confident about Klint Kubiak's future as head coach
The Raiders were able to land their top target in this year's hiring cycle, leading to plenty of optimism about how the organization will look under Kubiak. The franchise is projected to have nearly $100 million in cap space and ten draft picks, including the No. 1 overall pick, which they are expected to use on Fernando Mendoza.
One key difference is that Las Vegas is coming off a 3-14 season, and they are entering a full rebuild. This is unlike the year before McDaniels was hired, as they had just finished 10-7, made the postseason, and also added Davante Adams and Chandler Jones to the roster.
Still, Raider Nation should feel confident that Kubiak's tenure will wind up nothing like his fellow Super Bowl offensive coordinator.
The main reason? Kubiak appears to be a far better leader of men.
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While McDaniels was a great play caller, he never appeared to resonate with the players in the locker room. A major part of the reason why his tenure did not work out was his inability to manage relationships within the locker room.
Kubiak, on the other hand, has received nothing but positive reviews from everyone who has shared a locker room with him, from both the players and the coaching staff. His ability to manage different personalities should bode well for the Raiders.
Of course, he has never worked as a head coach, but comments from Mike Macdonald, Sam Darnold and Jaxon Smith-Njigba suggest that he is more than ready for the role. It doesn't matter if you're leading a group of 27, 45 or 90. A leader is a leader.
Time will tell if Kubiak will indeed do a better job than McDaniels. But for now, Raiders fans should take solace in the fact that he seems like a far better leader than the Patriots' offensive coordinator, who, despite being strong at Xs and Os, failed miserably at that part of the job.