How Klint Kubiak Is Leaning on Tom Brady to Begin Raiders Tenure

Las Vegas’s new head coach is leaning on the minority owner quite a bit.

Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The Raiders are going under yet another makeover entering 2026.

After finishing the 2025 campaign an abysmal 4–13—and in the process securing the No. 1 pick in the upcoming NFL draft—Las Vegas fired head coach Pete Carroll after just one season at the helm. The move marked the second time they've done so in as many years, following the dismissal of Antonio Pierce in '24.

Since then, in the days following the Seahawks’s Super Bowl LIX win over the Patriots in early February, the Raiders made their splash, finalizing the hire of Seattle offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak as their next man in charge.

It’s already been a whirlwind few months for the 38-year-old, to say the least, as he's been involved in the trade—and subsequent retention—of star edge rusher Maxx Crosby, a massive free-agent spending spree, and the scouting of presumed No. 1 pick in Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza.

While speaking with Raiders.com’s Paul Gutierrez at the NFL’s annual meeting in Phoenix this week, Kubiak spoke on his transition so far.

“[It’s] what we love to do,” he explained. “Working in the NFL, coaching, working with the players. It’s the best job in the world. It’s so fun to come to work every day with people that you respect and [we] get to get our hands on these players next week and help them, help their careers. It’s not a job. It’s fun coming to work every day.”

Kubiak was also asked about his working relationship with Raiders minority owner Tom Brady, and admitted the two have been in contact quite a bit since he took over as head coach.

“I probably contact him once every two days,” said Kubiak of his correspondence with Brady. “Or text back-and-forth, or call each other. [He’s] very supportive, obviously wants the Raiders to win, and is always trying to touch base with myself or with Spy [general manager John Spytek] on how he can help that process. So I love picking his brain, love hearing where he’s coming from. He’s given me so many pointers on experiences that he’s been through. So I’m taking notes and I’m asking questions.”

That’s quite the connection between a head coach and a 5% stakeholder in a franchise. That said, not every minority owner is walking around with seven Super Bowl championships on their résumé, and Brady has made his influential presence within the organization known since his sliver of a purchase in the franchise became official in late 2024.

Tom Brady is far more than a Raiders minority owner

Tom Brady purchased a minority stake in the Raiders in 2024. | Candice Ward-Imagn Images

As we detailed last month here on Sports Illustrated, Brady is doing far more for the Raiders than what his job description might suggest.

Not only is his close friend and former business partner Alex Guerrero the team’s “wellness coordinator,”—a hire that reportedly hasn’t sat well with the players in Vegas—but he’s also overseen the firing of two coaches and was spotted wearing a headset in the coaches's booth early last season (all while also being Fox Sports's lead color commentator, mind you). Acts that go far beyond the landscape of a minority owner.

It will be fascinating to monitor just how much more say he will have in the franchise throughout 2026 and beyond. Either way, the trio of Brady, Kubiak and Mendoza will be worth the watch this upcoming season.

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