SAN FRANCISCO — The NFL’s offseason coaching carousel is finally coming to an end, and is set to hit one of the competing teams in Super Bowl LX in particularly rough fashion.
The Cardinals hired Rams offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur as their new head coach. That choice, announced Sunday, arrived a day after a Saturday meeting with Seahawks offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak. Arizona’s quick pivot became necessary as Kubiak is widely expected to become the head coach of the Raiders.
That deal in Las Vegas is anticipated soon after Super Bowl LX on Feb. 8, where the Seahawks will face the Patriots. Coaches on Super Bowl teams are allowed to be interviewed for other positions through Feb. 1.
Super Distraction
The developing Kubiak situation, while certainly not unprecedented among teams competing in a Super Bowl, nonetheless creates a potential distraction surrounding the team as it looks to claim its second league title and avenge a Super Bowl loss to New England 11 years ago.
The Raiders’ hire, once it becomes official, will complete a particularly frenetic offseason coaching cycle that involved 10 teams, nearly a third of the league, and tying a league record. Those shifts also involved the NFL’s two longest-tenured coaches, Mike Tomlin in Pittsburgh and John Harbaugh in Baltimore. Tomlin resigned from the Steelers and is now coveted by many broadcasters, while Harbaugh signed a five-year, $100 million deal to become the Giants’ head coach.
In Las Vegas, Kubiak will be much younger than the rest of his division rival coaches. The 38-year-old Kubiak, the son of former NFL quarterback and head coach Gary Kubiak, is more than 20 years younger than the Chargers’ Jim Harbaugh (62), Broncos’ Sean Payton (62), and Chiefs’ Andy Reid (67).
A Very Brady Favorite
The Raiders’ selection of Kubiak is also notable on multiple fronts. The team has the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft in April and is expected to select Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza, fresh off of leading the Hoosiers to a perfect season, a national title, and a Heisman Trophy win. The Raiders also have nearly $90 million in available salary-cap space, the second-largest amount in the league.
More importantly, though, Kubiak has clear support from the Raiders’ minority owner and Fox Sports broadcaster Tom Brady.
During the network’s coverage of the NFC championship game last week between the Seahawks and Rams, Brady repeatedly lauded Kubiak on-air, saying at one point, “Kubiak designed some great plays, getting his guys open. And then [quarterback Sam] Darnold just executing everything.”
Kubiak’s hire, meanwhile, would mean there are no new Black head coaches hired in this offseason cycle, despite the historically high number of vacancies. That will almost certainly raise new questions about the effectiveness of the league’s Rooney Rule, and will likely be something commissioner Roger Goodell is asked about on Monday at his Super Bowl press conference.
