Klint Kubiak Ideal Hire For Geno Smith, Seahawks' Offense

Though the Seahawks waited out the process, Klint Kubiak stood out from the start and now will be tasked with maximizing the team's offensive talent.

Aug 25, 2024; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; New Orleans Saints offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak during the warmups before the game against the Tennessee Titans at Caesars Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images / Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

Wrapping up their search for a second offensive coordinator in as many offseasons, the Seattle Seahawks have opted to hire long-time NFL assistant Klint Kubiak to replace Ryan Grubb after an exhaustive search that included interviews with at least six candidates.

According to NFL Network insider Mike Garafolo and as confirmed to sources to Seahawks On SI, the Seahawks have agreed to terms with Kubiak to become their new play caller. The 37-year old interviewed for the position twice, including in person on January 27, after serving as the Saints offensive coordinator last season.

While coach Mike Macdonald indicated prior play calling experience wouldn't be a prerequisite for the coordinator role in Seattle, the team just swung and missed on Grubb after hiring him from Washington. Ultimately, while he and general manager John Schneider kept an open mind interviewing several candidates without prior NFL play calling experience, they chose the safer bet with Kubiak, who has three seasons of experience as a coordinator in 11 total seasons in the league.

Looking at his resume, though Kubiak has never engineered a top-10 offense, it's not hard to see why the Seahawks viewed him as the best candidate to succeed Grubb after nearly four weeks of conducting interviews with coaches from a variety of different backgrounds, particularly for his past results working with quarterbacks.

After three seasons as an assistant in Denver with the Broncos, Kubiak took over as the Vikings quarterback coach in 2019, helping veteran Kirk Cousins enjoy one of the best seasons of his career, throwing 26 touchdowns compared to eight interceptions as the team advanced to the Divisional Round of the postseason. Though the team regressed in 2020 with Kubiak's father Gary as the offensive coordinator, the signal caller tossed a career-high 35 touchdowns leading the fourth-best offense in terms of yardage.

Rewarding him for his work as a quarterback coach, then-coach Mike Zimmer promoted Kubiak to offensive coordinator in 2021. Under his direction, Cousins nearly hit his career-high for touchdowns again, finishing ninth in the NFL with 33 of them. But Minnesota finished 8-9 and missed the playoffs, leading to the entire coaching staff being dismissed and a new regime coming on board.

Over the next two seasons, Kubiak worked as a pass game coordinator for the Broncos and 49ers, helping Brock Purdy throw for 31 touchdowns and lead the league in passer rating (113.0), yards per attempt (9.6), and touchdown rate (seven percent) in 2023.

This past season, the Saints finished 24th in scoring under Kubiak, but there should be an asterisk next to that statistic considering the litany of injuries the franchise endured on offense. After scoring more than 40 points in each of the first two games, the team failed to perform to expectations with multiple key players sidelined, including tackle Ryan Ramczyk and receivers Chris Olave and Rashid Shaheed, and Derek Carr's season ending broken hand further exacerbated problems by forcing rookie Spencer Rattler into action.

When Carr was healthy, however, he played quite well in Kubiak's system, throwing 15 touchdowns compared to just five interceptions. New Orleans also ranked a respectable 14th in rushing offense with multiple starting offensive linemen missing more than half of the regular season and star running back Alvin Kamara missing the final three games with his own injury.

Seeing what Kubiak could do when he had his full arsenal available before a rash of injuries hit early in the season, Macdonald likely views his scheme as an excellent fit, as it stacks up favorably to the likes of the Ravens, Lions, and Eagles. The Saints ran 12 personnel with multiple tight ends at a 30 percent rate and deployed two-back 21 personnel 16 percent of the time, joining the Ravens as the only team in the top six in both groupings.

As for a stat that should perk up Macdonald's ears, New Orleans also finished ninth in the NFL in yardage coming off of play action passes, dialing up play action on 20 percent of their pass attempts in 2024, nearly six percent higher than Seattle did with Grubb calling the shots.

Running a pro style scheme with obvious ties to the Mike Shanahan system, Kubiak checks off many of the boxes Macdonald outlined in his final press conference earlier this month, as he has a proven track record of building efficient run games and explosive passing attacks that create problems for opponents dealing with receivers in space. Having previously coached in Denver and San Francisco, he could be trusted with the autonomy Macdonald covets from a play caller as well.

In terms of personnel, Kubiak's prior success with Cousins should bode well for Geno Smith's chances of returning as Seattle's starting quarterback and create lofty expectations for what the two can accomplish together with a bevy of dynamic weapons around him. After helping Justin Jefferson eclipse 1,600 receiving yards in 2021 in Minnesota, his presence as play caller should also generate excitement for DK Metcalf and Jaxon Smith-Njigba in his offense.

But maybe most importantly, after finding moderate success with Kamara behind an injury battered line, Macdonald must have been sold on Kubiak's potential to maximize the talent of Ken Walker III and Zach Charbonnet out of the backfield for a Seahawks squad that ranked a dismal 28th in rushing yards last season. It will be interesting to see whether he retains line coach Scott Huff or chooses to bring in his own assistant to fill the job.

If he chooses to go with the latter route, Kubiak could recruit long-time line coach John Benton, who worked with him in New Orleans last season, to come to Seattle and return to the NFC West. He previously coached San Francisco's offensive line from 2017 to 2020, playing a key role in the team advancing to the Super Bowl with a second-ranked rushing attack in 2019.

As far as building a staff goes, now that Macdonald has identified an offensive coordinator in Kubiak who he believes will share the same vision as he does, other assistants should be brought on board quickly, especially with only one head coaching job left vacant around the league. Once that takes shape, it will be time to go to work tweaking the scheme with the goal of getting the most out of Smith, Walker, Metcalf, and company.

Coming off a 10-win season, Macdonald needs this hire to hit, as whiffing on a second straight play caller would be a recipe of disaster in terms of his own job security early in his head coaching career. But considering his past track record, the scheme he employs, and his success with quarterbacks, this has a chance to be a significant upgrade that can inch the Seahawks closer to their goal of competing for championships in 2025.

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