Placing Odds on the Raiders’ Coaching Candidates, Which Coach Comes in at No. 1?

The Raiders are narrowing down the search for their next head coach and there appears to be three front runners for the job as of Thursday morning.

For entertainment purposes only, let’s slap some odds on the next head coach in Las Vegas and see how everything plays out.

From worst odds to best, a familiar name that seems to be a long shot for the job is at the top of the list (or bottom of the list as it may be)…

Mike McDaniel – 5 Percent

McDaniel is expected to be named the Chargers’ offensive coordinator as early as today.

The fact that McDaniel hasn’t officially accepted the OC offer from the Chargers (as of early Thursday morning) means he is still in the running to be a head coach somewhere. McDaniel met with the Raiders this week, so maybe that’s the job he believes he still has a shot at.

5 percent odds might be a little high, but could something unforeseen still be in the cards?

Davis Webb – 25 Percent

Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer predicted last week that Webb would end up getting the Raiders’ head coaching job.

Breer’s report carries weight, but Webb comes in no. 3 on this list.

It has been rumored that Kliff Kingsbury could potentially be Webb’s offensive coordinator… but would Kingsbury be a good fit?

Kingsbury has a relationship with Tom Brady, so that might help his chances, but there are some Chip Kelly vibes to Kingsbury’s coaching resume, and a Webb/Kingsbury ticket doesn’t necessarily feel like a slam dunk hire.

It’s also worth noting that Webb apparently blew away the Raiders in his interview.

“Davis Webb, who is the 30-year-old passing game coordinator for the Broncos, interviewed the other day with the Raiders, and late last night I got some great feedback on the interview. It was told that it was not good. It was phenomenal,” Sports Illustrated insider Hondo Carpenter said on the Las Vegas Raiders Insider podcast.

“I would just say this, I think the Raiders were very pleasantly surprised. I’m not predicting he’s going to get a second interview, but it would not shock me at all. I asked the person I spoke to, do you think [there] is going to be a second interview? And their exact words were, ‘Wouldn’t be surprised.’ That was exactly how they worded it.”

Mike LaFleur – 30 Percent

The dark horse candidate for the Raiders from the start. LaFleur is going to be a head coach in the NFL sooner than later and league insider Josina Anderson reported on Wednesday night that the Raiders “have an affinity” for the 38-year-old offensive coordinator.

LaFleur has been with Sean McVay in Los Angeles since 2023 but he also has a history with Kyle Shanahan.

LaFleur hasn’t been labeled the “front runner” for the Vegas job, but his odds of getting the job might be a little better than what is being talked about right now.

Let’s rank LaFleur slightly ahead of Webb but place the odds of Webb or LaFleur getting the job above Klint Kubiak getting the job.

Klint Kubiak – 40 Percent

There isn’t a more respected offensive coach in this year’s candidate pool than Kubiak.

Everything about Kubiak makes sense for the Raiders.

Kubiak would be a great option to get the most out of Brock Bowers and Ashton Jeanty, and his quarterbacks have found tremendous success in recent years, too.

Kubiak doesn’t deserve to be held back by the notion that he doesn’t have a big personality, but if he doesn’t get the job, it will be fair to wonder if Webb or LaFleur did a little better job of winning over the decision makers in Las Vegas with their interviews.

For what it’s worth, if this column were written yesterday, Kubiak’s odds would be at 50 percent or better.

And that’s all there is to say about that right now.

x: @raidersbeat