If Washington Commanders offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury is the competitor we think he is, there has to be something that still bothers him about his abject failure as an NFL head coach.
Kingsbury was really bad for most of his time leading the Arizona Cardinals from 2019 to 2022 before he was finally fired. he brought his career back to life with the Commanders in 2024, and did so thanks to a large helping of Jayden Daniels at quarterback.
Inevitably, Kingsbury seems destined to become an NFL head coach again. There’s some thought he could have done it following last season and become the head coach of the New Orleans Saints — the job Philadelphia Eagles offensive coordinator Kellen Moore ultimately took — but Kingsbury chose to come back for at least one more year with the Commanders and Daniels.
Bleacher Report’s Moe Moton thinks it’s inevitable Kingsbury will end up leading another NFL franchise.
While that would be great — mainly for Kingsbury’s bank account — it’s important to note he failed just as miserably as a big time college football head coach at Texas Tech. So if we’re trying to correct past mistakes … well you get the picture.
“Kingsbury has head coaching experience that will boost his resume,” Moton wrote on July 1. “As the Arizona Cardinals’ lead skipper, he helped Kyler Murray make two Pro Bowl rosters and led the club to a playoff berth in 2021. Teams that plan to take a quarterback early in the 2026 draft will hold Kingsbury to a high regard based on what he’s done with Murray and Daniels, assuming the Commanders signal-caller builds on a strong rookie campaign.”
Teams Likely In Market For Kingsbury
Kingsbury is smart. Let’s start there. By not going in on any of the jobs available last year he probably avoided some pitfalls — being the Dallas Cowboys head coach ain’t all it’s cracked up to be — and opens himself up to what could be some primo openings in 2026.
Leading the way of those speculative jobs would be the Miami Dolphins, where head coach Mike McDaniel might not even make it through the regular season after the Dolphins went 8-9 and missed the playoffs after back to back AFC Wild Card Round losses in McDaniel’s first 2 seasons.
The New York Giants could be another great opportunity — head coach Brian Daboll is as bad as it gets — and of course there’s always the Cleveland Browns, where head coach Kevin Stefanski doesn’t seem like he will make it out of this season.
Commanders Are Legitimate Super Bowl Contenders
All indications are that Commanders head coach Dan Quinn and general manager Adam Peters essentially gave Kingsbury a blank check to build his offense in 2025, making blockbuster trades for offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil and wide receiver Deebo Samuel.
Kingsbury was also allowed to dictate the Commanders’ first round pick, where they selected a plug-and-play starter for the offensive line with Oregon’s Josh Conerly Jr. at No. 26 overall.
Somehow, the Commanders are years ahead of schedule in just Year 2 with Daniels and Kingsbury and are legitimate Super Bowl contenders, and another run like last year’s 12-5 regular season record and NFC Championship Game appearance means Kingsbury might be able to be the one who says where he coaches next.
