Klint Kubiak isn't much into caring about how he comes off media-wise.
If his straight-to-the-point, no-wasted-words, monotone-to-the-bone approach isn't flavorful enough, well, you'd never know if he cared but if he didn't, that wouldn't at all be a surprise.
Just know that the places where the New Orleans Saints' first-year offensive coordinator needs to be communicative and get across his point – the meeting rooms, the sideline during games, interacting during practice – he seems to have all the right words needed to thrive.
And for the man credited with scripting an offense that has produced 91 points in the first two games this season – nine consecutive scoring drives to open the game against Carolina, and six consecutive touchdown drives to open the game against Dallas – that really is all that matters.
The Saints (2-0) play the Eagles (1-1) on Sunday in the Caesars Superdome.
"It's been two games," Kubiak said. "I think our guys have done a good job of starting off, we've got a long road ahead, a lot of football left. I'm pleased with our effort early, but I'm not satisfied."
So, who, exactly, is Klint Kubiak? It may require the Jaws of Life to pry out anything beneath the surface.
"Ball coach for the Saints," he said, before offering that that didn't provide much depth. "I'm a Christian, I'm a dad and somewhere down the line, a football coach."
And none of those roles requires Kubiak choosing to divulge anything beyond those descriptions.
"That's kind of his vibe," running back Alvin Kamara said. "He don't say too much, he's just locked in but he's just about the business, honestly.
"He just wants to put us in the right position. He's scheming, he's always thinking – a thinker. He's never really got too much to say. I like it, because I'm kind of the same way."
"He's all ball. He's all ball," quarterback Derek Carr said. "He loves football, he grew up around it and he absolutely loves this game. I'd say 'stoic' is probably a good word out here (with the media).
"He's like that with us, too, but when it's time to coach football and you put that clicker in his hand, he's going to call me out, he's going to call our guys out, he's going to address everything, he's going to say I need it like this, and they coach perfection. He is going to coach perfection.
"He's going to hold us to that standard all the time, knowing that no one is ever going to be perfect. But we all say, 'Yes, sir,' we work on it practice. Whatever he coaches us on, and our position coaches, we go out there, we're working on it. He's like, you guys have got to get better at this, we go out there and we work it."
The work that began when Kubiak was hired in February, after serving as the passing game coordinator last season for San Francisco during the 49ers' run to the Super Bowl, took hold in the offseason and has helped the 2024 Saints become the second-highest scoring team in a season's first two games since the 1970 NFL merger. The top scoring team is the 2009 Saints, who posted 93 points in the first two games.
Players have lauded the attention to detail from Kubiak and the offensive staff.
"He doesn't let anything fall into the cracks," Carr said. "He calls everybody out – myself, if A.K. (Kamara) had anything, if (receiver) Chris (Olave) had anything, if (center) Erik (McCoy) had anything – if anybody has anything, he tells everybody.
"And we do it all in front of each other, and now we're held accountable in front of our peers, and I think that's a beautiful thing. When you can do that in the way that he does it, and the way that he cares about us, also. It's not just like he's yelling at us and he doesn't care, he also tells us, 'Hey, good freakin' throw.' That's nice to hear sometimes, too."
But while you may never see a smile crease Kubiak's face on the sideline, he doesn't mind seeing players celebrate success. Whether that's Kamara laying back against the padded wall behind the end zone and basking in the adulation after scoring a touchdown, or it's Carr popping a Michael Jackson dance move after plunging into the end zone from a yard out, Kubiak said he has no problem with the expressiveness.
"I'm happy that our players are excited and having fun, because that's what this game is about," he said. "I want them to celebrate, I want them to have fun."
Because he, too, is having fun doing what he's doing.
"I think it's been really cool, just the people I get to be around – Coach (Dennis) Allen and (Executive Vice President/General Manager) Mickey Loomis and (senior offensive assistant) Rick Dennison and (tight ends coach) Clancy Barone. I can name the whole offensive coaching staff.
"Those guys have been really impressive, and they have not gotten enough credit but none of us want the credit because we all know what's ahead of us. We've got a lot of football ahead. We've done some good things thus far but we all know that we're two games into this thing. So we've got to stay humble, stay hungry and if we do that, we'll be all right."
