Klay

Kubiak

Only two days ago, Kubiak had zero reported interview invites. Now he is slated to interview for both the Steelers and Raiders’ head-coaching vacancies. Good for him. Kubiak’s offense has helped propel the 49ers into the Divisional Round, with the defense’s front-seven being hampered by injuries.

This is Kubiak’s first reported invitation to interview for a new role of any kind. Good for him. The 49ers’ offense is averaging 5.5 yards per play as it heads into a matchup against the division-rival Seahawks this weekend. The unit continues to perform very well despite missing key players for multi-game stints throughout the year.

ESPN’s Nick Wagoner detailed Jones’ three-week offseason onboarding process, which transpired after the 26-year-old quarterback signed a two-year, $7 million contract in March. 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan, Kubiak and QB coach Mick Lombardi spent the duration breaking down cutups of Jones’ previous film and showing Jones a need to focus on things like the footwork needed to succeed in the offense. Learning and executing the basics of Shanahan’s famed offense is key. Per Wagoner, watching Darnold rewire himself appealed to Jones, who also wants to “rebuild from the ground up, starting with his confidence.” Jones won’t challenged Brock Purdy for a starting job, but he could make good on Kubiak’s starter comments elsewhere come 2027.

Shanahan named Kubiak to the role just two days ago but, per Jones, “NFL rules do not allow teams to name coaches to previously closed coordinator roles without an open search process.” Shanahan reportedly favors Kubiak for the role because “Kubiak has done this job without the title for 2 years, but rules dictate a search must be done.” The search will undoubtedly be heavily scrutinized by the league. How it pans out is anyone’s guess.

To no one’s surprise, Kyle Shanahan will retain the play-calling duties in 2025. This marks just the second time in Shanny’s head coaching tenure that he has assigned the offensive coordinator title to someone. The other was in 2021 when Mike McDaniel held the role. Klay, another son of Gary Kubiak, got his start in the NFL as a quality control coach for the 49ers in 2021. He has worked his way up the ranks ever since and, like McDaniel before him, will be a popular name in league circles for head coaching jobs if the 49ers right the ship next year.