SEATTLE – The Seahawks’ week at the Super Bowl appears to be starting with the news that they will have to find a new offensive coordinator following the game next Sunday against the New England Patriots.
Both ESPN and the NFL Network reported Sunday morning that first-year offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak appears in line to become the next coach of the Las Vegas Raiders, where he will take over for former Seahawks coach Pete Carroll, who was fired following a 3-14 season.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Sunday morning that Kubiak “intends to try to work out a deal to become the next head coach of the Raiders.”
The NFL Network, meanwhile, reported that the Raiders “are targeting Kubiak” and “believe they have their guy.”
The complication is that no hire can become official until after the Super Bowl, so Kubiak and the Raiders may each publicly have little to say this week.
But the reports seem to make clear that Kubiak will leave Seattle for the Raiders after the Super Bowl.
Kubiak had second interviews with both the Raiders and Arizona Cardinals on Saturday afternoon/evening, the last day he was able to talk to other teams.
He can no longer do so with the Seahawks flying to the Bay Area on Sunday to begin Super Bowl preparations.
Kubiak had virtual interviews with six teams during Seattle’s bye week following the regular season and those were then followed up Saturday with further interviews with the Raiders and Cardinals.
As another sign that Kubiak is getting the Raiders job, the Cardinals announced later Sunday that they are hiring Mike LaFleur as their new head coach. LaFleur had been the offensive coordinator for the Rams and he and Kubiak were regarded as the favorites for the Arizona job. With Kubiak going to the Raiders, LaFleur is headed to Arizona to take over for the fired Jonathan Gannon.
Kubiak has been viewed as a front-runner for the Raiders job all along and that became more evident late this week when Denver quarterbacks coach Davis Webb – also thought a candidate for the job – pulled his name out of the running.
The 38-year-old Kubiak became a hot candidate by leading the Seahawks to a franchise record for points in a season and third in the NFL at 28.4 per game in his first year as OC after taking over for the fired Ryan Grubb, devising a scheme that also got the best out of quarterback Sam Darnold and helped Jaxon Smith-Njigba have one of the best receiving seasons in league history.
Kubiak is the son of former NFL quarterback and head coach Gary Kubiak, who most notably led Denver to the Super Bowl title following the 2015 season. Klint Kubiak incorporates a number of aspects of the same offense that Gary Kubiak ran during his coaching career, a version of the offense also popularized by Mike and Kyle Shanahan.
While it’s thought Kubiak may have had his pick of the two jobs, it’s been speculated he preferred the Las Vegas opening. The Raiders will have the No. 1 draft pick and could select Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza of Indiana as a quarterback for a new coach to build around and he may also have been lured by the presence of Tom Brady, the legendary player who became a minority owner of the Raiders in 2024.
Brady has been reported to be involved in the search for a new coach.
Brady served as analyst for Seattle’s win last Sunday over the Rams in the NFC title game, saying near the end: “Kubiak designed some great plays, getting his guys open. And then Darnold is just executing everything.”
ESPN reported Sunday that Brady and Kubiak “very much hit it off” during their initial interview, which moved Kubiak to the top of the Raiders’ list quickly.
Possible candidates to replace Kubiak in Seattle include current Seahawks passing game coordinator Jake Peetz, who interviewed for Detroit’s offensive coordinator opening last month, and Mike Kafka, who was offensive coordinator for the New York Giants from 2022-25 before ending the 2025 season as interim head coach. Another possibility could be Seahawks offensive run game specialist and assistant offensive line coach Justin Outten, who was also the offensive coordinator for the Denver Broncos in 2022 and run game coordinator for the Tennessee Titans in 2023. Outten has also helped take over coaching Seattle’s running backs this season after running backs coach Kennedy Polamalu took a leave of absence in December.
Kafka was recently hired to an unspecified offensive staff role by the Lions, which would make him available to become a coordinator.
The Seahawks interviewed Kafka for their head coach opening in 2024 that went to Mike Macdonald.
One of Kubiak’s first decisions will also be to figure out if the team will keep quarterback Geno Smith, a former Seahawks QB who went just 2-13 in his starts this season, throwing 19 touchdowns against 17 interceptions.
Carroll helped to convince the Raiders to get Smith in a trade with Seattle last March, giving up a third-round pick that the Seahawks used to draft Jalen Milroe.
Smith has a clause in his contract in which $8 million in salary for 2026 becomes guaranteed if he is still on the roster as of March 13.