The Raiders kept building the infrastructure around head coach Klint Kubiak’s biggest job, developing the next quarterback.
The team announced Tuesday it hired Mike Sullivan as quarterbacks coach, adding a veteran teacher with two Super Bowl rings and a track record of working with young passers. If Las Vegas uses the No. 1 overall pick on quarterback Fernando Mendoza, Sullivan now sits in the seat that matters most.
A quarterback coach hire that fits the bigger staff plan
The Raiders have been clear about how they want this thing built. On March 1, the team announced Kubiak’s full 2026 coaching staff, with Andrew Janocko as offensive coordinator, Rob Leonard as defensive coordinator and Joe DeCamillis running special teams.
That list also laid out the support structure around the quarterback room: Nick Holz as offensive pass game coordinator, Mario Jeberaeel as offensive run game coordinator and Rohit Mogalayapalli as director of special projects and game management.
Now Sullivan plugs into that framework as the position coach tasked with turning the most important player on the roster into a functional pro.
A quarterbacks hire with a clear draft echo
Kubiak has preached “silent tape” and earning trust. The quickest way to earn both is to stabilize the quarterback room, especially with the draft looming.
Sullivan arrives with 21 seasons of NFL experience and recent work in Pittsburgh, where he served as quarterbacks coach from 2021-23 and as a senior offensive assistant in 2024, according to the Raiders. In 2022, he helped develop first-round pick Kenny Pickett, who started the final 12 games and went 7-5 as a starter, the team said.
If the Raiders draft Mendoza, that experience becomes relevant fast. A rookie quarterback does not just need a playbook. He needs a daily plan.
From Roethlisberger to Manning, Sullivan has lived the job
The Raiders also tied Sullivan to veteran success. In 2021, he worked with Ben Roethlisberger in the final season of the quarterback’s 18-year career, when Roethlisberger threw for 3,740 yards and 22 touchdowns and Pittsburgh reached the postseason, according to the team.
Before Pittsburgh, Sullivan served as offensive coordinator for the Giants from 2016-17. The Raiders said New York went 11-5 in his first season, and Eli Manning recorded his fifth straight 4,000-yard season. The team also noted Odell Beckham Jr. ranked third in the NFL with 1,367 receiving yards that year.
Two rings, one quarterback jump that still stands out
Sullivan won two Super Bowls with the Giants, XLII and XLVI, during his first eight seasons with the franchise from 2004-11, the Raiders said. He coached wide receivers from 2004-09, then moved to quarterbacks coach from 2010-11.
The Raiders pointed to the 2011 season as a snapshot of his work with Manning. In his second year working with Sullivan, Manning posted career highs in passing yards (4,933) and yards per attempt (8.4). During the Giants’ four-game playoff run, Manning averaged more than 300 yards and finished with nine touchdowns and one interception, according to the team.
Another veteran voice for Kubiak’s offensive staff
Sullivan’s resume also includes offensive coordinator work in Tampa Bay from 2012-13. The Raiders said the Buccaneers produced a 4,000-yard passer, a 1,000-yard rusher and a 1,000-yard receiver in 2012, and finished ninth in total offense while setting a franchise record at 363.8 yards per game.
In Kubiak’s first year running the Raiders, the offensive brain trust already has defined lanes. Janocko coordinates. Holz handles pass game. Jeberaeel handles run game. Mogalayapalli supports game management. Sullivan now owns the day-to-day quarterback development inside that system.
A background built on discipline
Sullivan’s path to the NFL started in college football, and it also started on the military side.
He coached eight seasons in the collegiate ranks before moving to the NFL, according to the Raiders. A native of Santa Maria, Calif., Sullivan played defensive back at Army and graduated from the U.S. Army Airborne, Ranger and Air Assault schools.
What it means if the pick is Mendoza
The Raiders have not announced what they will do with the No. 1 pick. But the quarterbacks coach hire matches what teams do when they expect a young quarterback to sit at the center of the rebuild.
If Las Vegas drafts Mendoza, the Raiders just paired him with a coach who has helped a first-round rookie take over late in a season, worked with veterans at the end of Hall of Fame careers and coached a quarterback through a Super Bowl run.
That does not guarantee anything. But it does show Kubiak’s staff build is aligning around the sport’s biggest reality: if the quarterback hits, everything else gets easier.
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Dice City Sports editor Mark Hebert covers the Vegas Golden Knights, Las Vegas Raiders, Athletics, and UNLV baseball and softball. He has 24 years of journalism experience, is also a senior reporter at Exhibit City News, and previously covered the Dallas Stars and Texas Rangers. Follow him on X or connect on LinkedIn.
