Prior to being promoted to interim head coach, Las Vegas Raiders’ Antonio Pierce had only served as a linebackers coach in the NFL.
Pierce’s ascension to full-time head coach in Las Vegas was a bit surprising despite his success under that interim tag.
Pierce is more than likely going to play the role of a CEO for the Raiders. That is to say, overseeing operations without actually calling plays on either side of the ball.
It’s in this that Pierce needed to bring in experienced coordinators in all three phases. He’s just done that. According to NFL Media’s Mike Garafolo, the Raiders have hired former Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury as their next offensive coordinator.
Make no mistake about it. This is a home run hire for Pierce and the Raiders.
We know very well how Kingsbury’s tenure as the Cardinals’ head coach ended. They finished his final season as their head coach in 2022 with a disgusting 4-13 record. Kingsbury also found himself in a rift with former No. 1 pick Kyler Murray.
That’s the narrative we’ll see from outlets attempting to paint this hire in a less-than-stellar manner. But Kingsbury is the perfect hire for this position.
Related: Is Kliff Kingsbury’s bold ‘Air Raid’ vision the way to transform Las Vegas Raiders’ offense?
Kliff Kingsbury is a home run hire for the Las Vegas Raiders
Whether we want to call it an “Air Raid” offense or something else, Kingsbury has been a major part of evolving offenses at both the collegiate and professional levels.
While not directly linked to late-great college coach Mike Leach, Kingsbury’s offense and coaching style can be attributed to him. His coaching career started as an offensive quality control coach under the respected Kevin Sumlin with the Houston Cougars back in 2008. Kingsbury was then the offensive coordinator under Sumlin with Texas A&M in 2012.
That’s when he earned the Texas Tech head coach job in 2013, working with that program for six seasons. He helped morph Patrick Mahomes into a first-round pick and eventual all-time great NFL quarterback in Lubbock.
Sure, Kingsbury’s four-year run as Arizona’s head coach did not end swimmingly. But for a while, Kyler Murray played at an NFL MVP level under his leadership. Since moving on from Arizona, he acted as a senior offensive analyst under Lincoln Riley with the USC Trojans. We don’t need to be experts to realize the role he played in Caleb Williams turning into the likely No. 1 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.
For the Las Vegas Raiders, adding someone of Kingsbury’s ilk and experience is no small thing. They’ll likely be looking to add a young quarterback early in the 2024 NFL Draft. Speculation is growing about a potential trade up for either Williams or North Carolina’s Drake Maye. This hiring will not shut down those rumors. It will only add fire to them.
Regardless, the Raiders are in quarterback purgatory right now. Pierce can’t really do anything to change that as his experience is on the other side of the ball. Adding Kingsbury to the mix changes the landscape big time right now.
Even if new general manager Tom Telesco and the Raiders add a youngster to the mix at quarterback, they’ll also go the veteran route after the failed Jimmy Garoppolo experience. Whether it’s someone like Russell Wilson or Kirk Cousins, Kingsbury’s presence in Vegas is only going to add credibility as the Raiders seek an answer at that all-important position.
Yes. This was a home run hire for the Raiders. There is no other way to go about it.