FEBRUARY 19: The Raiders confirmed on Thursday that Dennison’s title will be offensive line coach, to little surprise.
FEBRUARY 16: The Raiders hired Travis Smith to be their defensive line coach under new head coach Klint Kubiak, per a team announcement.
Smith is returning to Las Vegas after three years in Chicago (defensive line coach) and one in Tennessee (defensive run game coordinator). He was announced as the Titans’ senior defensive assistant/pass rush specialist on Robert Saleh‘s staff, but is instead opting to reunite with the Raiders, for whom he coached from 2012 to 2021. He served in a variety of roles on the defensive side of the ball and worked closely with Maxx Crosby at the beginning of his career.
Also joining Kubiak’s staff is Rick Dennison, per CBS Sports’ Matt Zenitz. Dennison, 67, has spent the last three decades coaching in the NFL, primarily working with offensive linemen with coordinator stints in Denver, Houston, and Buffalo. He and Kubiak have worked together since 2016, Dennison’s last year as the Broncos’ OC and Kubiak’s first as an offensive assistant.
The two then overlapped in Minnesota from 2019 to 2021, after which Dennison stepped away from coaching. He returned to the NFL in 2024 to join Kubiak’s offensive staff in New Orleans as a senior assistant and followed him to Seattle last year. Dennison then served as the Seahawks’ run game coordinator/senior offensive advisor in 2025 and will now join the Raiders in a yet-to-be announced role.
Kubiak is still looking to fill the quarterbacks coach position on his staff, and Vikings asst. OC/asst. QBs coach Jordan Traylor is a candidate for the job, per KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson. He previously worked under Kubiak in New Orleans in 2024, on the same staff as Dennison and now-Raiders OC Andrew Janocko.
That’s surprising that Dennison was willing to work for Davis, he was a long time Bronco. I guess it makes sense though, with the Kubiak connection.
Not really. Al and Mark are different. I’d rather have Al but mark is proving to be a real owner. One who doesn’t meddle. Willing to accept that he doesn’t know what he doesn’t know and more than willing to pull the plug and move on, even if that means he’s gotta pay $$.
Mark started not to meddle since Tom Brady came along last year…
Hmmm. I have a feeling you don’t follow the Raiders. MD hired Reggie McKenzie and let him run the ship. Then when he got Gruden and let Gruden do
His thing until we all know what happened. He brought TB12 on because he’s trying to build a winner. Wants winners in the building.
How about Josh McDaniels and Antonio Pierce?
That’s for that. MD let McDaniels hire his own GM in Dave Ziegler. Let McD move on from Carr when you know MD wanted to keep him. Let McD bring in Jimmy G. Should I go on?
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Raiders are loading up on Crosby-friendly Defensive coaches. They are making an all out attempt to keep him happy and in Las Vegas.
Continuity plays a huge factor.