Offensive Coordinator Klay Kubiak Press Conference

Offensive Coordinator Klay Kubiak

Press Conference – September 17, 2026

San Francisco 49ers

Your rushing average last year was not where you guys like to have it. Your per carry average looked good on Thursday. What did you guys do right? What did you like from that aspect of the game?

“I look at it as a unit thing. It’s offensive unit success. So, it’s being in manageable third downs so that we can stay on the field, so we can get more runs. That’s the big thing. But I just thought our backs ran really well. I thought our O-Line played very well. I thought our receivers blocked very well. So collectively in the run game, I thought everyone was pretty tied together and played really well. We had games like that last year, but it was inconsistent. I mean, bottom line. I thought there was a good rotation with the backs where I thought either back who touched the ball, to me, they were explosive. They were powerful. I think all those things kind of built up to a good day running the ball. It’s just one game. We have to keep getting better and keep pushing our guys so we can try to be that way every week, but we’ve got our work cut out for us again this week.”

You guys obviously want to run the ball well, but going into the offseason and evaluating how things went last year, was there any extra emphasis in improving the running game and trying different things schematically and bringing sort of new plays to the running attack this year?

“We’re always evaluating our scheme and trying to stay ahead of things and trying to evolve. But we were 29^th – I don’t know if that’s the right number, something like 29th in rushing last year. It wasn’t good enough. When you really look back and study it, it goes back to what I said. It’s a unit thing. It has to do with – it’s receivers, it’s tight ends, it’s every person on the field that we hold accountable in the run game to do their part to be a good rushing offense. Sometimes it has to do with how good you are on third down so you can get more carries. But yeah, we are always evaluating our scheme. We’re trying to get our players better, add new players. It’s just one game too. We got our work cut out for us all year. We got to keep growing. We got to evaluate as we go throughout the year too and let our scheme evolve and become what we’re going to be.”

When we talked to head coach Kyle Shanahan yesterday and he was asked about the offensive line, he basically said they played unbelievable. Given it is just Week One, what did you like about what you saw from the offensive line specifically?

“I thought they were physical. I thought they did a good job of sustaining blocks and finishing. To me, that stood out. I thought in pass protection, they were outstanding and playing within the scheme and what we were trying to accomplish. And using our tight ends and our guys playing off the technique of the tight ends, I thought it was all really well executed. So, they played really good and they got to keep getting better and we got to keep getting better every week. So, it’s just one game. We got to keep moving on and go to the next one.”

How much does the emergence of RB Kaelon Black make RB Christian McCaffrey a more effective runner in terms of giving him maybe a blow and also giving the defense another skill set to account for?

“Yeah, I think that’s a big part of it with the defense. There’s two guys who are going to carry the ball who are a problem and I think that’s one thing. And Kaelon’s just been great since he’s been here. I think aside from wanting a rotation with Christian to kind of spare him a little bit in the game, we just want to get Kaelon touches. He’s a good player. He deserves touches. And so, anytime you got multiple players touching the ball who are affecting the game in that way, it’s a good thing for your offense. I’m glad we have two backs. I think we have three backs. I think [RB] Jordan [James] is capable of doing that too. [WR] Deebo [Samuel Sr.] is capable of doing that too. So, I like where our backs are at. I like the way they’re progressing, the way that they can rotate with Christian, it helps our offense. It body blows on a defense. It’s what we want. So that’s going to be the goal as we go week-to-week.”

WR Demarcus Robinson doesn’t necessarily run a fast 40, but he’s a very good down-the-field receiver.

“Don’t tell D-Rob that [laughs]. I don’t know what his 40 is but go ahead.”

It’s not great, but he catches a lot of deep balls. Why is that? Why can this guy make plays down the field without that vertical speed?

“I don’t know. I think some guys when the ball’s in the air, they have a knack for just going up to get it. He has great hands. D-Rob knows how to get his body in position to kind of box out the DB. It’s a natural football player, a natural receiver, a natural pass catcher, however you want to frame it. D-Rob has that. Whatever a lack of 40 he does, D-Rob can run, but he has a savviness to how he runs routes where he can separate too. So, he’s a good player. He’s helped us a lot and expect that for him going forward.”

Is he better having a year in this offense?

“I think so. I think anybody. It’s just time on task, reps. D-Rob hasn’t missed a day since he’s been here to me, except for the suspension he had. He’s out there every day. He’s working. Yeah, he’s gotten better. To me, that’s why he’s helping us, he’s improved. He’s more confident in our offense. He’s more confident in his route tree. We love him around here. And so, expect him to keep helping our team.”

You guys have always used motion a lot, but when you’re installing the motions that you were using a lot the other day where, it’s borderline going toward the line of scrimmage, just how much timing is involved in that? What are the challenges when you’re putting those plays together of making sure you have the people who can be on the same page and hit that?

“Yeah, it’s time on task. You got to work on it. It’s got to be part of what you do from day one. In terms of our offense, when we install it, those are the motions we have in. Your quarterback’s got to be on it. The guys who are in motion have to be able to anticipate the snap count. It helps when you’re at home and you don’t have to worry about silent count and things like that, where you can really time it up with the quarterback’s cadence. You got to be able to mix it up. You got to be able to mix up your cadence. You got to be able to do things that kind of offset the timing of those motions so that defenses aren’t teeing off on it. So, it’s all those things, but it takes a lot of reps. It takes a lot of time on task. And I think if you just decide one day you’re going to do it, it’s not going to be effective. You got to work on it. It’s got to be a part of your identity. I think that’s why we’re pretty good at it.”

Built into that with the offensive line in particular, when a guy goes in motion, sometimes the defense is moving and I assume that changes aim points and angles. How difficult is it for those guys?

“Yeah, that’s part of playing O-Line. That’s one thing that [OL] Jake [Brendel], our center, does a heck of a job of is getting those runs targeted, knowing when targets might change, when motion might affect the defense, when motion might pull someone into the box or pull someone out of the box. Those are all tied into the scheme. Each run scheme has its own kind of targeting. It has its own way of blocking it based on what we’re trying to run. So, having a veteran center and veteran guys helps a lot. But it’s, again, that’s part of how we run the ball and it’s part of how we teach those guys.”

When did you guys make a decision on left guard? Did it go right up until that week of practice?

“Yeah, I think we really let those guys kind of compete throughout the week and get reps. And we felt really comfortable with [OL] Connor [Colby] the week he had, kind of the few weeks he had leading up to that game. He was ready to go and thought he played his butt off.”

With Kaelon Black being activated early in the game, was that part of a function of Christian going through some cramping or was that part of the game plan to get him involved really early in the game?

“Yeah, we had intentions of rotating those guys. I think the way the carries kind of came out in the end wasn’t intentional. Kaelon had a few more carries than Christian, but that was kind of a product of Christian did have the cramps, but then we’re in a four-minute mode at the end where we’re giving Kaelon the carries. We also had a really unbalanced run-pass ratio through the first quarter. I think we were three to 18 or something. So, Christian’s in for a lot of those plays. Just kind of the way it played out. And that wasn’t really intentional, but the rotation and keeping two backs going was very intentional.”

Is there any advantage in evaluating an upcoming opponent after going against your brother’s offense a week earlier?

“I don’t think so. I think people run similar stuff around the league. It’s nice to talk to my brother to kind of get a feel for what they went against. But you got to do your own work, and you got to evaluate it on your own. I would say it’s cool to talk about, but it doesn’t change anything.”

You talked in training camp about one of the things with QB Brock Purdy this year was working on being maybe a little more judicious about when to leave the pocket. Is there anything from Week One that stood out to you, a play where you thought maybe he did it differently than he would have last year or was an example of what you want?

“I wouldn’t say differently. I think we had a 2^nd-and-long in that 99-yard drive where he scrambled and got a first down. To me, that’s a great example of when you want a quarterback to use his legs. You get man coverage, your routes don’t win and when defenders are playing man coverage, usually there’s somewhere for the quarterback to run. Brock, his clock went off. He went through his progression. He saw that one and two were covered and his clock went off and he saw grass and he took it and he was aggressive and that’s what we want. That’s how you want a guy to play. What you don’t want is a guy to go back there and just duck his head and go. You want a guy to play quarterback first and then run when it’s the right time. I thought that was a great example. I don’t think he had any where it wasn’t the right decision. So great. Awesome for Week One. We want him to keep doing it, keep stacking those weeks and keep that mindset and just keep going throughout the year.”

Miami Dolphins LB Jacob Rodriguez for them, the rookie, had 14 tackles. Are you noticing him when you watch film? Does he stand out in any way?

“Yeah, he’s going to be a heck of a player. You can tell they put a lot on him as far as their communication, as far as getting their people lined up. He’s a tackle machine and he’s like Fred how he can punch the ball. He’s a turnover machine. He’s only a rookie, but you can see a guy who’s going to be a really good player for a long time. So, he’s going to be a challenge on Sunday.”