Kliff Kingsbury decides to stay with Washington Commanders, despite Saints’ interest

Washington Commanders offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury will be back with the team next season despite having a chance to be a head coach. Fox Sports NFL Insider Jordan Schultz said Kingsbury has decided to stay in Washington.

“Commanders OC Kliff Kingsbury — despite interest from the Saints and other teams — has decided to stay in Washington for a second season following a remarkable turnaround that saw the team go from 4 wins to an NFC Championship appearance,” Schultz wrote on X. “His return ensures continuity for the Commanders’ offense heading into 2025. Kingsbury will be a top HC candidate again next year, but the opportunity in Washington was too good to walk away from now.”

The Saints had an interest in Kingsbury, but he never interviewed with the team. As mentioned by Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, Kingsbury’s Arizona Cardinals buyout extends into 2026, so he’s in no rush to become a head coach in the NFL again.

Kingsbury, who was the Cardinals head coach from 2019 to 2022, joined the Commanders this season after spending the 2023 season as a senior offensive analyst at USC. Under Kingsbury’s leadership, the Commanders’ offense ranked seventh in total yards per game (369.6) and fifth in points per game (28.5). Kingsbury helped rookie QB Jayden Daniels become a star as he threw for 3,568 yards and 25 touchdowns while rushing for 891 yards and six TDs.

Dan Quinn says Kliff Kingsbury has been ‘excellent’ for the Commanders

Ahead of the NFC Championship game, Commanders head coach Dan Quinn talked about working with Kliff Kingsbury. “Kliff, competing against him provided some of the most difficult challenges [for me]. And that was similar to Atlanta to hire Kyle [Shanahan],” Quinn said, per the Commanders’ official website. “And this is challenging, this is aggressive and that’s really who I am. So I wanted to make sure that everything would match that. And so going against Kliff, I just felt like, man, this is a really tough group to prepare for and play against.

“And so as we kept in touch through that process, knowing that we would have very likely a quarterback selected and his experience with that, I thought what a perfect fit. What I’d found out was what the competitor is, what a great teammate he is. And so he’s been like an absolute blast to work with. Like he is an absolute competitor, man. He comes across quiet and that — like he is a real competitor, like a wolf in sheep’s clothing kind of competitor. And I really appreciated that about him. He’s been excellent for us.”