The Seattle Seahawks are getting ready for the biggest game of the season. The New England Patriots won't be an easy opponent to get past, not even for the best team in the National Football League.
That's why offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak can't afford any distractions right now. This is the biggest game of his career, and it requires 100 percent of his attention. That's why the future can wait another day.
Kubiak is expected to be the Las Vegas Raiders' new head coach, but he can't officially take the job after the Super Bowl. With that in mind, he's not even going to address that situation until after the big game.
Klint Kubiak is entirely focused on the Seattle Seahawks
“I’m just focusing on playing this game and coaching this game,” Kubiak said, per Michael-Shawn Dugar of The Athletic. “Been working my whole life to get to coach in this game, and that’s where our focus is.”
True to form, the media kept pushing and trying to trick Kubiak into talking about his head-coaching gig. Kubiak didn't take the bait and doubled down on his commitment to the Seahawks and their players until the final game of the season:
“That’s another part of another process,” Kubiak said. “That is just something I’m not really wanting to talk about tonight. We’re all so focused on this game, and our players deserve all of our attention for this game.”
Losing Kubiak is going to be a huge blow to Mike Macdonald's coaching staff, but it's not like it's a surprise by any means. He's been one of the most talked-about assistant coaches since Week 1, and given his Kubiak pedigree, it was just a matter of time before he got a chance to run a team of his own.
The former New Orleans Saints offensive coordinator helped Sam Darnold play like an MVP in the first half of the season, and he's done a great job of scheming his players open and making him comfortable within his offensive system.
The running game hasn't been as efficient, but even though the per-carry averages aren't great, the volume has also helped keep opposing defenses honest. That has opened up plenty of passing lanes for Darnold and Jaxon Smith-Njigba.
With him at the helm, the Seahawks averaged the third-most points per game in the regular season (28.4), and they've scored 72 points in two postseason games. They also ranked seventh in total yards per game (362.3).
Coach Macdonald will most likely have to promote someone from his own staff to replace Kubiak, given that most of the top-tier options have already landed new jobs. But just like with Kubiak and the Raiders, that's a bridge they'll have to cross when they get there.