It’s a short celebration for Klint Kubiak as he goes from winning the Super Bowl with the Seattle Seahawks to filling out his coaching staff with the Las Vegas Raiders. That will be one of our big topics of discussion for this week’s mailbag, as well as free agency and the 2026 NFL draft. So, let’s get to it!
Q: What differences in the Raiders’ approach to free agency/draft do you see them making this year, as opposed to last year? Do you see them still looking for short-term deals, or will they go after more proven players in free agency?
A: I touched on this a little last week, so apologies if I’m repeating myself a bit here.
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I think the Raiders will be willing to add older players on short-term contracts at offensive line and wide receiver to help give Fernando Mendoza the best chance at having success early in his career. Plus, the organization wants to make sure its investment in the future of the franchise is well-protected by bringing in veterans to at least provide some competition for young guys like Caleb Rogers, Charles Grant, etc.
But outside of those two position groups, I get the feeling John Spytek is going to target younger free agents who can be part of the long-term plan. Spytek has talked a lot about developing guys and building for the future, rather than finding quick fixes. Having a younger head coach who is on a five-year contract versus a 74-year-old who doesn’t have time for a rebuild makes it easier for everyone in the building to be on the same page.
We might see a few short-term deals to fill out the roster, but I think the primary goal of this offseason in Las Vegas is to add young talent and have a collection of players who will grow together.
TOWNBIZZ25
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How many Olineman would you sign in free agency?
A: At least two who can come in and compete for a starting spot, one right tackle and an interior guy. I’d look for another guard to make three, but that might be getting a little greedy. I don’t think the Raiders should be taking chances when it comes to protecting Mendoza, meaning they need to add and probably overspend a bit for proven offensive linemen in free agency.
If Rogers, Grant and/or DJ Glaze end up winning starting spots over the offseason additions, then so be it. Having too many good linemen is a good problem to have. Maybe Spytek can make a trade to recoup some of the losses, but in this situation, at least he used every asset possible to reinforce the trenches and made sure the future of the franchise is well-protected.
Q: What is the appeal of Jim Schwartz? He is still under contract with the Browns, and his scheme seems very talent-dependent. It could be an ugly couple of years until they assemble the talent to run his man-heavy scheme.
A: The appeal is that Schwartz has an impressive resume with 12 defenses that have finished in the top half of the league for yards allowed, including five top-five finishes, and has been coaching in the NFL for about 30 years. I think the experience is especially appealing since he’s been a head coach before and Kubiak hasn’t. So, the Raiders’ brass likes the idea of giving Kubiak a sounding board on the staff, and it’s a bonus that Schwartz has a good track record as a defensive coordinator.
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That being said, I’m with you that Schwartz has benefited from working with a lot of talent in Cleveland, especially with the combination of Myles Garrett and Denzel Ward. Schwartz’s man coverage-heavy scheme is pretty simple and works well when the defense has a cornerback who can take away an offense’s No. 1 receiver and the best pass-rusher in the league (maybe in NFL history) to get pressure by the time the quarterback gets to his second read. However, things can get pretty ugly when the talent isn’t there.
Especially if it means Las Vegas has to give up draft picks to get Schwartz since the Cleveland Browns control his rights, then I’m out on him. But it sounds like this is going to be a moot point anyway. Reports are that the Browns aren’t willing to let the defensive coordinator out of his contract, so he’s expected to sit out this season.
Mr_Blockbuster
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Any favorites for DC?
Leonard to help appease Maxx?
Someone from Seattle?
Perhaps poach from another team?
A: I touched on a few defensive coordinator candidates in the related post below. I was hoping Kubiak would be able to bring Karl Scott with him from Seattle, but Ian Rapoport crushed my dreams by reporting that Scott is going to stay with the Seahawks.
One option that seems to be flying under the radar is current Philadelphia Eagles cornerbacks coach Roy Anderson. Anderson and Kubiak worked together with the Minnesota Vikings, and the former stems from the Vic Fangio coaching tree. Fangio has a great scheme, so I’d be very intrigued by giving Anderson a shot to call the defense if he can bring over that system.
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I’m in the camp of people who wouldn’t mind giving Rob Leonard a promotion. I think he’s done a good job with the defensive line over the last three years, and the Raiders were able to scheme up a bunch of tackles for loss against the run last season. My concern with Leaonard is that I don’t know what types of coverages he’d run, and that it’d be pretty similar to Patrick Graham’s scheme. Those two were pretty connected, working together with the New York Giants (2016-2017) and Miami Dolphins (2019) before reuniting in Vegas.
10silver
We know that Kubiak is good at designing and calling offensive plays, but can he improve the Raiders defense to be great like the Seahawks defense? I think that’s equally important.
A: This is why the DC hire is important for Kubiak. He wasn’t even in Seattle long enough to have a firm grasp on Mike Macdonald’s scheme. That’s where being able to land someone like Scott would have been nice. However, the Raiders are interviewing the Seahawks’ safeties coach Jeff Howard for their defensive coordinator opening, per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero. That’s an option to poach someone from Macdonald’s defensive staff. Howard and Kubiak also worked together in Minnesota, so there might be some legs here.
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Q: Do coordinators usually choose their position coaches or does the head coach decide? I’m surprised Kubiak hasn’t hired his staff at a faster rate, especially knowing how important the OL and QB coach will be.
A: The head coach gets final say on the entire staff, including all position coaches. Kubiak might lean on his coordinators to bring in candidates for the position coaches, especially defensively, and their recommendations will have weight. But it’s ultimately Kubiak’s call on who gets hired and falls on him.
As far as the lack of hires, let’s remember that he wasn’t officially hired until Tuesday. Give him more than three days (at the time this was written) to make some hires, LOL!
Bug68
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What would the criteria be for a “successful” off-season?
A: The Raiders are off to a good start by getting Kubiak and eventually landing Mendoza. After that, I’d say getting two starting-caliber offensive linemen and a go-to wide receiver in free agency, and then loading up on defensive players from the second round on during the draft. Landing a quality defensive coordinator is a factor, too, but it seems like Las Vegas is probably going to get someone who hasn’t called plays in the past. So that’s going to be hard to judge until the season rolls around.
RaiderFaninElPaso
Is the issue with Christian Wilkins contract/money going to be resolved before the start of the free agency period?
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A: It doesn’t seem like it. There’s no public information on when the hearing for Christian Wilkins’ grievance is, and we haven’t heard any updates since the situation reached its tipping point this summer. As of today, Wilkins accounts for nearly a $30 million dead cap hit, according to Over The Cap. Even with that, the Raiders still have the second-most cap space in the NFL at $91.5 million.
Q: While I truly hope that the Raiders draft Mendoza, there is one scenario I’d like to get your opinion on. Would you consider trading the #1 pick to the New York Jets for the following: their two number ones this year (picks 2 and 16) PLUS one of their 3 number ones in 2027 (even their “lowest” one) PLUS Armand Membou?
A: Since the Jets took Membou seventh overall last year, this is essentially four first-round picks for them to move up one spot in the draft. I don’t think that’s realistic, but I’d certainly consider it if it’s on the table. My concern is that the Raiders would be back to square one when it comes to having a clear path to finding a quarterback.
I’m going to continue to say this when it comes to trade scenarios with the No. 1 overall pick: If another team is willing to mortgage their future and give up a haul to draft Mendoza, that says a lot about how the NFL views him as a prospect versus what’s been discussed in the media. In all of these scenarios, it feels like the smartest move the Raiders can make is just to draft their quarterback and go from there.
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Q: If you (and the Jets!) say yes to the above, would you then like to see Klint Kubiak bring back Derek Carr to be a “bridge” QB this year and then draft one in 2027, which is supposed to be a deeper QB class? The Raiders could even put their #1 and the one they get from the Jets to move up the board.
A: I think the Carr ship has sailed. I’d rather see the Raiders sign someone like Mitchell Trubisky to be a bridge gap or take a flier on Malik Willis in free agency than give up a draft pick or picks to bring Carr back.
Silvercreek1965
Hi Matt,
Aside from Cole, last year’s kicking game was not good. I suspect, they will bring in ‘competition’ for Carlson, but what do you notice as the problem last year? Was it the holder, has Carlson fallen that far off.. or what?
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A: Daniel Carlson is a free agent this offseason, and it wouldn’t surprise me if there’s a new kicker in Las Vegas next fall. His field goal percentage has been declining every year since 2020, bottoming out at 81.5 percent this past season, which ranked 27th among kickers with at least nine attempts, per Pro Football Focus. So, I think Carlson has fallen off, and it’s time to move on.
That’ll do it for this week’s mailbag. Thank you all for submitting questions and, as your weekly reminder, if you’d like to have your questions answered in a future column, tweet them at me, @MHolder95, email them to SBPQuestions1@gmail.com or look for our weekly call for questions on the site. The latter will continue to publish on Thursdays.
As a side note, I had a brain fart this week and scheduled my call for questions on Friday instead of Thursday. So, apologies if I didn’t get to you this week. But I’ll circle back on this week’s questions for my next mailbag (which will most likely be next week) and touch on the ones that are still relevant.
