HENDERSON, Nev. — The ink is barely dry on Klint Kubiak’s five-year contract, but the work to rebuild the Silver and Black has already hit terminal velocity. Just 24 hours after leading the Seattle Seahawks to a 29-13 victory in Super Bowl LX as their offensive architect, multiple reports confirmed Kubiak as the new head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders. Now, he faces a defensive puzzle that starts and ends with one name: Maxx Crosby.
Fixing the Front: The Kubiak Connection
General Manager John Spytek didn’t just hire a play-caller; he hired a championship culture. As Kubiak shapes his staff—recently adding veteran Joe DeCamillis as special teams coordinator—his influence is already bleeding into personnel discussions. The Raiders are coming off a dismal 3-14 season where the pass rush outside of Crosby was virtually non-existent. To keep “The Condor” happy and productive, Las Vegas needs reinforcements that understand Kubiak’s vision of a high-pressure, relentless front.
According to Fox Sports’ Greg Auman, two specific edge rushers on the 2026 free agent market stand out as logical fits due to deep-rooted ties with the Kubiak family and the Seattle system.
- Von Miller (No. 100 on Top 100): The future Hall of Famer isn’t just a legacy name. At 36, Miller defied age in 2025, leading the Washington Commanders with 9.0 sacks on a rotational basis. Miller won a ring playing for Klint’s father, Gary Kubiak, in Denver and shares a well-documented bond with Crosby.
- Boye Mafe (No. 35 on Top 100): While Mafe’s sack total dipped to 2.0 in Seattle’s championship run, his peripherals tell a different story. He finished 2025 with the eighth-best pass-rush win rate in the NFL, narrowly trailing Myles Garrett. Kubiak knows firsthand how Mafe’s ability to collapse the pocket creates opportunities for others.
“I’m going to have to earn the right to coach this whole season… I have to show Mr. Davis that our program is about the right things and that we’re developing these players. I’m fired up to get to work.”
— Klint Kubiak, Raiders Head Coach
The Spytek Strategy: Building Around the No. 1 Pick
The Raiders aren’t just looking for veteran leadership; they are looking for production that justifies their massive 2026 salary cap space. Spytek, who helped build a champion in Tampa Bay, knows that a rookie quarterback—likely the target with the No. 1 overall pick—needs a dominant defense to keep games within reach.
Adding a situational technician like Miller for roughly $6 million or investing in the prime years of Mafe would signal to Crosby that the front office is serious about contention. If the Raiders can replicate even half of the defensive formula Seattle used to stifle the Patriots in the Super Bowl, the “Black Hole” might finally have something to scream about again.