Falcons ask Seahawks to interview OC Klint Kubiak, reports say

SEATTLE – The domino effect of coaching moves being made around the NFL is reaching the Seahawks as the Atlanta Falcons have reportedly requested an interview with offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak.

The NFL Network was the first to report the news Monday morning of Atlanta’s interest in Kubiak. Atlanta fired second-year head coach Raheem Morris on Sunday night after consecutive 8-9 seasons.

The Falcons also fired general manager Terry Fontenot after five season s and announced that searches for both positions would begin immediately. The team also announced that ZRG Partners will assist with the head coaching search, while Sportsology Group will assist with the general manager search.

It has been reported Kubiak is likely to receive interest this offseason after the job he did this year in reviving the Seahawks offense in his first year as coordinator after replacing the fired Ryan Grubb.

The Seahawks set a franchise record for points scored with 483 as they finished tied for the best record in the NFL at 14-3.

The Seahawks also finished eighth in yards per game at 351.4 and were sixth in yards per play at 5.9.

Kubiak also helped quickly integrate free -agent quarterback Sam Darnold into the offense while helping the running game get going.

After some early-season struggles the Seahawks finished 10th in the NFL in rushing offense at 123.3 per game.

Kubiak seemed sure to attract interest because of his family heritage. His father, Gary, was a longtime NFL quarterback and coached the Denver Broncos to a Super Bowl win following the 2015 season.

Klint Kubiak runs a system that has as its base the outside-zone running game that was a central part of the offenses of Gary Kubiak and Gary Kubiak’s mentor, Mike Shanahan.

Atlanta’s most recent biggest success came when the Falcons had Mike Shanahan’s son Kyle Shanahan as their offensive coordinator running a similar system, helping lead the Falcons to the Super Bowl following the 2016 season.

The Falcons might view that as a good fit for quarterbacks Kirk Cousins and former UW standout Michael Penix Jr.

Penix suffered an ACL tear in November and it’s unclear when he will return, which has led to some thought the team may retain Cousins.

Kubiak was the QB coach with the Vikings in 2019-20 and the offense coordinator for Minnesota in 2021 when Cousins was the QB there.

The 38-year-old Kubiak has never been a head coach at any level. He was an assistant at the college or NFL level since 2010 following four years as a player at Colorado State where he was a safety.

Asked recently if he wants to be a head coach someday, Kubiak said: “I want to win with the Seahawks. I want to win a lot of games here, and all that stuff takes care of itself when you win. So that’s the best way to say that.”

NFL rules allow for assistants who are with teams who have first-round byes – such as the Seahawks – to interview virtually for head coaching jobs this week. Those must be concluded by the end of the weekend.

Kubiak could be considered for other openings, as well.

But his background in an offense that the Falcons have run successfully during the time owner Arthur Blank has had many pegging the Falcons as a likely suitor.

Kubiak was listed as the favorite to get the job Monday morning shortly after it became available by betonline.ag, which pegged him at 3-1 to get it. Jeff Hafley, the defensive coordinator of the Green Bay Packers, has the second-best odds at 11-2 followed by Kevin Stefanski, who was fired Monday as head coach of the Cleveland Browns, at 13-2.