Kliff Kingsbury hired by Washington Commanders

Aug 8, 2019; Glendale, AZ, USA; Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury against the Los Angeles Chargers during a preseason game at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Kliff Kingsbury officially has a new job.

Though it once appeared as if Kingsbury would be hired by the Las Vegas Raiders for their offensive coordinator position, Kingsbury has been hired by the Washington Commanders to be their OC.

Word had emerged on Feb. 1 that the Raiders were expected to hire Kingsbury. However, we learned on Saturday that contract talks between the sides fell through. Kingsbury then was mentioned in connection with the Commanders job.

The hire of Kingsbury is a big one for Dan Quinn, who was hired as the Commanders’ head coach on Tuesday and wasted no time bringing in Kingsbury.

Quinn is a defensive-oriented head coach, so having the experienced Kingsbury handle the offense will help balance his staff immensely.

Kingsbury has coached since 2008 — the year after his playing career ended. He was the head coach at Texas Tech from 2013-2018 and then was hired to be the Arizona Cardinals’ head coach. The Cardinals went 28-37-1 over four seasons with Kingsbury as the head coach. They made the playoffs in the 2021 season but lost in the wild card round.

Kingsbury comes from an Air Raid offensive background and has helped develop/coach quarterbacks such as Baker Mayfield, Johnny Manziel, Patrick Mahomes and Caleb Williams. Sam Howell was the Commanders’ starting quarterback for most of this season. The team will have the No. 2 overall pick in the upcoming NFL Draft.