Before Klint Kubiak became the new head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders, he served as the offensive coordinator for a Seattle Seahawks team that won the Super Bowl this past February with Sam Darnold serving as its starting quarterback.
During a recent appearance on the “Bussin’ With the Boys” podcast, Darnold revealed that he recently spoke with Kubiak at the Seahawks’ championship ring ceremony about Raiders rookie quarterback Fernando Mendoza and presumed Week 1 starter Kirk Cousins.
Klint Kubiak feels “great” about Fernando Mendoza, Kirk Cousins
“He feels great about Mendoza,” Darnold said about Kubiak, per Levi Dombro of FanSided/Just Blog Baby. “He loves his quarterback situation there with Kirk as well. Just being able to have Kirk help the rookie is going to be such a blessing for that kid, man. Kind of the same way my rookie year I had (then-veteran quarterback) Josh McCown, just to be able to have that constant, that guy to just be able to bounce things off of. When you start having those doubts, to be able to voice that to a guy like Kirk, and a guy who has lived it and has had people doubt him in the past. He’s probably doubted himself at some point. To be able to have that as a young player is so valuable. So valuable.”
Reports shared throughout the NFL’s ongoing summer break have indicated that Kubiak and Raiders minority owner Tom Brady feel that Mendoza needs to enter his rookie season as either Cousins’ primary backup or as the club’s QB3 behind Aidan O’Connell. Putting O’Connell at the QB2 spot on the depth chart would prevent Mendoza from immediately being called into action in the event that Cousins goes down with some sort of setback during a September game.
Sam Darnold predicts if Klint Kubiak will enjoy success with Raiders
Kubiak was
Darnold’s passing game coordinator when the two were with the San Francisco 49ers during the 2023 season, and Darnold has routinely credited his time in San Francisco with helping him resurrect his career. Thus, it’s no surprise that Darnold seems confident that Kubiak will achieve great things with the Raiders.
“Klint’s going to be great,” Darnold added during the podcast. “He’s got such a — I think the biggest thing as a head coach, you’ve got to have a level head on your shoulders. You got to be able to, like, okay, something goes wrong, he’s never going to overreact to anything. He’s going to keep it steady. I think for the players, that’s such a blessing, to have a guy who’s leading you be able to have that mindset and be able to have that level head is incredible, man. I think he’s going to do a really good job. And his system is incredible, his offensive system. And I think they’re continuing to find the right players to be out there.”
As long as the Raiders don’t plummet toward the very bottom of the overall league standings this fall, Kubiak should be able to keep Mendoza sidelined until further notice. However, it remains to be seen how Kubiak will react if it becomes clear before Halloween that Cousins is well past his prime.