From Oil Fields to the Sidelines: Klint Kubiak’s Unconventional Path to NFL Head Coach
Before Klint Kubiak ever started drawing up game plans or calling plays, he was counting pipe in East Texas. Not exactly the résumé line you’d expect from a soon-to-be NFL head coach.
But that detour - brief as it was - helped clarify something essential for the former Colorado State safety: football wasn’t just the family business. It was his calling.
Kubiak, expected to be named the next head coach of the Raiders, didn’t always have a straight shot to the top. Despite growing up around the game - his father, Gary Kubiak, was a longtime NFL quarterback and coach - Klint had to find his own way. And for a moment, that way led him far from the gridiron.
After a stint as a graduate assistant at Texas A&M, Klint stepped away from coaching. The paycheck - a modest $17,000 - wasn’t enough to support his newly married life.
So he took a job in the oil fields, helping inventory pipe in East Texas. It was steady work, but it wasn’t fulfilling.
Then came the call that changed everything.
Uzoma Nwachukwu, a wide receiver Kubiak had coached at A&M, reached out unexpectedly. The message was simple but powerful: thank you. That call reminded Kubiak why he got into coaching in the first place - not for the paychecks or the title, but for the relationships, the teaching, the growth.
“I ended up quitting that job the next day,” Kubiak said. “It was just that phone call. The realization that it’s about these relationships… you get to teach football instead of a subject.”
That moment of clarity sent him back into the sport, where he’s quietly climbed the ladder ever since.
A Familiar Name in a New Role
Kubiak’s journey back into coaching eventually brought him to the Broncos - the team most closely tied to his family legacy. He served as an offensive assistant from 2016 to 2018, working under his father for one season and then under Vance Joseph. He returned in 2022 as the passing game coordinator and quarterbacks coach, even calling plays for the final six games of a turbulent season under Nathaniel Hackett.
Now, as he prepares to take the reins in Las Vegas, he’s set to become a head coach for the first time - and with the Broncos’ longtime rivals, no less. It’s a full-circle moment with a twist.
The road to this point hasn’t been smooth. Since 2018, Kubiak has worked for five different teams, with the Raiders set to become his sixth in as many seasons.
He’s been let go four times - twice by Denver - but that’s life in the NFL. When teams lose, even good coaches get caught in the churn.
Kubiak hasn’t let the setbacks define him. Instead, he’s leaned into what he’s learned: relationships matter. Whether it’s with players, fellow coaches, or front office personnel, building trust and connection is central to his coaching philosophy.
“You become a better teacher through different experiences,” Kubiak said. “That’s what this job is about - coaching people and seeing them get better.”
A Legacy, But Not a Shadow
There’s no denying Gary Kubiak’s influence on his son’s career. Klint worked alongside his father in both Denver and Minnesota, where Gary served as offensive coordinator for the Vikings in 2019 and 2020. When Gary stepped away, Klint stepped up, taking over as OC in 2021.
Klint’s quick rise through the NFL ranks owes something to those early opportunities, and he’s the first to acknowledge it.
“I wouldn’t be talking to you guys if it weren’t for my dad,” he said. “You’re the head coach’s son - you better make sure you make your dad proud.”
But Klint Kubiak isn’t trying to be a carbon copy. In fact, the best advice his dad ever gave him was to be himself.
“You’ve always just got to find a way to be yourself, because the players will see right through it if you’re not,” he said. “Take lessons from other coaches, but just be genuine.”
That authenticity has become a hallmark of his coaching style. He’s worked with a wide range of personalities and philosophies - from Mike Zimmer to Mike Macdonald - and he’s taken something from each stop. But through it all, he’s stayed grounded in who he is.
The Next Chapter Begins
There’s a certain irony in seeing a Kubiak lead the Raiders - a franchise that’s long been the foil to the Broncos, where his family’s roots run deep. But that’s the NFL. Journeys rarely follow a straight line, and loyalty often yields to opportunity.
For Klint Kubiak, this is more than just a job. It’s the culmination of a winding path that’s taken him from the sidelines of college football to the oil fields of East Texas and back again. It’s a story of persistence, of growth, of learning from the best while carving out his own identity.
And now, as he steps into the spotlight, he does so not just as Gary Kubiak’s son - but as a coach who’s earned his seat at the table.
The Raiders are betting on a teacher, a leader, and a man who knows that football is about more than Xs and Os. It’s about people. And that’s where Klint Kubiak shines.