So close but yet so far away.
The Las Vegas Raiders were expected to hire former Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury as their next offensive coordinator under promoted head coach Antonio Pierce. Something went awry over the last 48 hours.
Kingsbury has abruptly withdrawn from consideration for the job because of a breakdown in negotiations, a contract dispute, ESPN’s senior NFL insider Adam Schefter reported Saturday, citing the coach’s agent. According to multiple reports, Kingsbury is a favorite to land the Washington Commanders’ offensive coordinator position.
Kingsbury’s job with the Raiders was seemingly a shoe-in. The deal had not been signed, but everyone involved saw it as a formality, according to The Athletic’s Vic Tafur. The Raiders viewed Kingsbury as the “most creative” of the candidates, and the organization was excited to welcome and embrace him, Tafur added.
It looks like the Commanders will host a comeback to the NFL for Kingsbury, who spent a season as an offensive analyst at USC after he was let go by the Cardinals last season
Embed from Getty ImagesKingsbury reportedly interviewed with the Chicago Bears, Pittsburgh Steelers and Philadelphia Eagles for coordinator jobs. The Eagles ultimately decided on Los Angeles Chargers offensive coordinator Kellen Moore, while the Steelers picked former Atlanta Falcons head coach Arthur Smith. It does not seem likely that Kingsbury will join the ‘Monsters of the Midway’ either, as they brought on board Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinator Shane Waldron in January.
Las Vegas also had an option available to them in their back pocket, and he might still be open. News of the Raiders landing on Kingsbury came after NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported that the team interviewed UCLA head coach Chip Kelly twice.
Kelly could be inclined to go elsewhere. The former Eagles head coach, who also spent time at the helm of the 49ers, was also recently reported to be a “potential candidate” for the offensive coordinator position with the Commanders, who announced Thursday they had hired Dan Quinn as their new head coach.
Of the two coaches looking to make an NFL return from the Pac-12 during the current hiring cycle, one would think Kelly has an edge over Kingsbury.
Kelly, 60, took the Eagles’ head coaching job in 2013 and led the Eagles to back-to-back 10-6 seasons in his first two campaigns. His tenure, which saw the Eagles win the NFC East crown in his first year, ended in Week 16 of his third season after the Eagles posted a record of 6-9.
Kingsbury, 44, spent four seasons with the Cardinals, compiling a 28-37-1 record. They reached the playoffs one time and never was victorious in the postseason, bowing out in the first round against the Rams. Arizona posted a 4-13 record in Kingsbury’s fourth and final season.
