The Las Vegas Raiders struggled badly on the offensive side of the ball in 2023, and if the team is going to improve on the 8-9 record it had last season, the offense has to show it can move the ball consistently and put points on the scoreboard. New head coach Antonio Pierce has not officially named his team's new offensive coordinator yet, but the Raiders are closing in on former Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury, per NFL Network's Mike Garafolo.
The #Raiders have locked in on Kliff Kingsbury as their new offensive coordinator. No deal yet but it’s expected to get done. Following a year at USC, the former #AZCardinals head coach returns to the NFL as part of Antonio Pierce’s coaching staff. pic.twitter.com/YmoEoeGBaW
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) February 2, 2024
Kingsbury served as the head coach of the Cardinals from 2019 through 2022. He made progress through his first three season as he started off with a 5-10-1 record followed by an 8-8 season before going 11-6 and making the playoffs in 2021.
However, after that winning season, the Cardinals took a huge step back in 2022 with a 4-13 record that saw them finish in last place in the NFC West. He was promptly dismissed and joined the USC Trojans ahead of the 2023-24 campaign to serve as their senior offensive analyst and quarterbacks coach. After a one-year hiatus, it looks like 44-year-old will give the NFL another go.
Can Kliff Kingsbury breathe new life into Raiders offense?
Kingsbury established a reputation as having one of the most creative minds in football throughout his coaching career. The Raiders demonstrated a predictable and largely ineffective offense in 2023 as they ranked 27th in yards per game and 23rd in points per game.
The ineffectiveness of the Raiders offense was never more apparent than it was in a Week 14 loss to the Minnesota Vikings. The Las Vegas defense held the Vikings to a field goal, but the Raiders could not even match that and fell by a 3-0 margin.
They are seemingly trusting Kliff Kingsbury to prevent that from happening again. Assuming a deal is finalized, he will either be working with second-year quarterback Aidan O'Connell or a rookie who gets selected in the upcoming draft.
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