The Las Vegas Raiders are all but certainly bringing in former Indiana star Fernando Mendoza via the No. 1 overall pick in next month's draft. For the first time in a long time, the Silver and Black will presumably have a rookie quarterback at the helm, and a highly-coveted one, at that.
But for some reason, Klint Kubiak and John Spytek opted not to hire a quarterbacks coach this offseason. Instead, they seemingly figured that assistant head coach Mike McCoy and offensive coordinator Andrew Janocko, both quarterback gurus, could combine to get the job done.
However, the Raiders have apparently gone back on that way of thinking, determining that it was not worth the risk. Instead, they are hiring longtime NFL coach and experienced quarterbacks mentor Mike Sullivan, as first reported by NFL Network's Ian Rapoport.
And Sullivan is much more connected to the operation in Las Vegas than meets the eye.
Raiders hire ever-connected veteran Mike Sullivan as new QB coach
Before we dive into his year-by-year résumé, let's take a look at all of the connections he has to the Raiders' current regime, as well as some other notable figures in Silver & Black lore that he has rubbed shoulders with, or more.
First and foremost, when Sullivan was the New York Giants' offensive coordinator, he hired one Frank Cignetti Jr. as his quarterbacks coach. If that last name sounds familiar, that is because he's the brother of Curt Cignetti, who coached Mendoza in his final collegiate season at Indiana.
Going back further into his early years with the Giants, Sullivan was on the same staff as Al Holcomb for three years (2009-11), who is now the Raiders' senior defensive assistant. Rob Leonard also crossed paths with Sullivan in New York back in 2015, when he was just a defensive assistant.
When Sullivan was the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' offensive coordinator in 2012 and 2013, his offensive quality control coach was none other than Janocko, who now holds the offensive coordinator title in Las Vegas.
Sullivan first interacted with Kubiak back in 2018 on the Denver Broncos' staff, where the former was the quarterbacks coach and the latter was an offensive assistant. Gary Kubiak was a senior personnel advisor in Denver that year and Joe Woods was also the defensive coordinator.
Over the years, Sullivan was in the same building as Case Keenum, a potential veteran quarterback option, and other famous or infamous Raiders figures like Antonio Pierce, Patrick Graham and Geno Smith. He also worked with Steve Spagnuolo and David Carr while with the Giants.
Is that enough connections? Now, let's get into his pedigree.
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Sullivan is a Southern California native with 28 years of football coaching experience, including 20 years at the NFL level. He's been a quarterbacks coach at four different stops and an offensive coordinator at two, as well as a play-caller at three (more on that later).
His claim to fame as a pro football coach is helping to develop Eli Manning during his time with the New York Giants. Sullivan was given tons of credit for Manning turning into the quarterback that he became, by being both his position coach and the wide receivers coach, easing his learning curve.
But Sullivan has done a lot more than that in the league, starting with his first job as the defensive quality control coach under Tom Coughlin for the Jacksonville Jaguars. Then, in his second year, new Jaguars head coach Jack Del Rio had him transition to being an offensive assistant.
Kubiak tends to like coaches with experience on both sides of the ball, and Sullivan definitely fits that description. But he buttered his bread on the offensive side of the ball, particularly in the passing game. During his first stint in New York, he was also an eficionado at developing wide receivers.
Plaxico Burress, Hakeem Nicks, Amani Toomer, Steve Smith, Mario Manningham and Victor Cruz all developed under Sullivan's watch. Odell Beckham Jr.'s stardom is a testament to Sullivan's second term in New York, and Vincent Jackson's elite status was achieved under Sullivan in Tampa Bay.
As the Buccaneers' offensive coordinator, which dissected his stints with the Giants, young quarterback Josh Freeman set a then-franchise record for passing yards in a season, and Jackson was a star. Tampa Bay had the ninth-most yards in the league.
He returned to New York for several years, one as a quarterbacks coach and two as the offensive coordinator, before joining the Broncos' staff as the quarterbacks coach. There, he infamously crossed paths with Kubiak, who was, at the time, the interim quarterbacks coach.
After a few years off, Sullivan landed with the Pittsburgh Steelers, where he was the quarterbacks coach for three years and a senior offensive assistant in 2024. There, he worked with Ben Roethlisberger, a myriad of veteran quarterbacks, like Russell Wilson, and a rookie Kenny Pickett.
In Pittsburgh, he became the interim play-caller for the Steelers after Matt Canada was fired during the 2023 season. All in all, he is an experienced coach with plenty of skins on the wall and two Super Bowl rings to show for it. Hopefully, he is just what Mendoza needs in the quarterback room.