SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak said his entire focus this week is on beating the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl and not on a future that is expected to see him land a job as head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders.

Kubiak had his second interview with the Raiders on Saturday and a person with knowledge of the discussions said the two sides are working toward finalizing an agreement. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because no contract was in place and no announcement can be made until after the Super Bowl.

“I’m just focusing on playing this game and coaching this game," Kubiak said Monday night. "Been working my whole life to get to coach in this game, and that’s where our focus is.”

Kubiak declined to answer any questions about the search process, including what it was like to interview with Raiders minority owner Tom Brady.

“That’s another part of another process,” he said. “That is just something I’m not really wanting to talk about tonight. We’re all so focused on this game and our players deserve all of our attention for this game.”

Seattle coach Mike Macdonald seemed resigned to losing Kubiak after the Super Bowl, as well as potentially other assistants who could join him in Las Vegas.

“Our coaches, as they get these opportunities to take it to the next level, you’re happy for them,” Macdonald said.” It’s a little bittersweet because (Kubiak is) such a great person and great coach. ... We have a lot of great coaches and those people are going to have opportunities as well."

Kubiak, 38, would be the third coach in three seasons for the Raiders and fifth full-time leader since they moved to Las Vegas in 2020. He would succeed Pete Carroll, who went 3-14 in one season in Las Vegas after a storied run with Seattle that included two Super Bowl appearances and one championship.

Kubiak likely will be counted on to mold Fernando Mendoza, who led Indiana to the national championship, into the franchise quarterback the organization has long sought. The Raiders own the top pick in this year’s draft, and they are expected to use that selection on the Heisman Trophy winner.

Brady helped run the search with general manager John Spytek. Brady said he was impressed with Kubiak's offense after calling Seattle's last two playoff games in his role as an analyst on Fox.

“They make one thing look like another thing,” Brady said on an episode of “Let's Go” on Sirius XM. "There’s plays off of plays. I think Klint’s done a great job this season developing his own identity as a play-caller. They run the West Coast offense, that’s what Seattle does. They try to make it quarterback-friendly for Sam. Klint has played to the strengths of that team, and I think he’s, you know, last week’s game I thought he did a lot of great things against a very talented Rams defense.”

It was Kubiak’s work with Sam Darnold that got the Raiders’ attention. Darnold, taken third overall by the New York Jets in the 2018 NFL draft, had been considered a bust until leading Minnesota to a 14-win season in 2024. But the Vikings moved on from Darnold, and he proved that season was no fluke, winning 14 games in Seattle en route to making the Super Bowl against New England.

“He’s unbelievable," Darnold said. "He wakes up at insane hours. He gets to the facility at 4–4:30 in the morning, and he’s there later than anyone. He’s a grinder. He loves football. He’s very honest and he’s very forthcoming with his players, which myself and a lot of the guys really appreciate.”

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AP Pro Football Writer Rob Maaddi contributed to this report

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SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — Drake Maye said the shoulder injury that limited him in practice last week has improved enough that he had a normal workout on his first full day in the Bay Area for the Super Bowl.

Maye was unable to practice fully last week for the New England Patriots after injuring his throwing shoulder on a scramble in the AFC championship game win against the Denver Broncos.

But Maye said he had no limitations on Monday as the team prepares to face the Seattle Seahawks.

“I threw a good bit," Maye said. "I threw as much as I would in a practice, and it felt great.”

Maye said he will be fine for the game, which will come as a relief to Patriots fans counting on their second-year quarterback.

Maye had a breakthrough season in 2025, earning second-team All-Pro honors and being named a finalist for both the AP NFL MVP award and the AP NFL Offensive Player of the Year.

Maye led the NFL with a 113.5 passer rating, a 72% completion rate and an average of 8.9 yards per attempt. Maye threw for 4,394 yards with 31 TD passes in the regular season.

But he hasn't been nearly as productive in the postseason, throwing for just 533 yards and turning the ball over five times in three playoff wins for the Patriots to reach the Super Bowl.

Offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels has no concerns about how his quarterback will perform on Sunday when he will try to become the youngest starting quarterback ever to win a Super Bowl. Maye will be 23 years, 162 days old on game day — 178 days younger than Ben Roethlisberger when he won it all 20 years ago.

“He'll be fine,” McDaniels said. “He's good.”

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SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The NFL will play its first regular-season game ever in France next season with the New Orleans Saints set to travel to Paris later this year.

The league on Monday announced the plans to play a game at the Stade de France next season in addition to a multiyear deal to keep playing regular-season games at Real Madrid’s Santiago Bernabeu Stadium.

The NFL has already announced its first game in Australia next season with the Los Angeles Rams set to host that game, as well as games in Rio de Janeiro, Munich, and three in London. The league also could return to Mexico City next season.

The additions of Australia and France will mean NFL games will have been played in nine countries outside of the United States after next season.

The NFL says it has played 62 regular-season games outside the U.S. so far, with London, Berlin, Munich, Frankfurt, Madrid, Dublin, Sao Paulo, Mexico City and Toronto as hosts.

The Saints will play an opponent to be determined after the schedule is finalized later this year. The Saints have international marketing rights in France as part of the NFL’s Global Markets Program.

“Bringing a regular season game to Paris in 2026 marks an exciting next step in the continued expansion of the league’s global footprint,” Commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement. “Paris is one of the world’s greatest sporting and cultural cities with tremendous success in hosting global events that unite fans on the biggest stages. Playing our first‑ever regular season game at the impressive Stade de France, together with the New Orleans Saints, underlines our continued global growth ambitions and we look forward to bringing the NFL to our passionate fans in France.”

Saints owner Gayle Benson said she is excited to play in France, citing the “strong cultural connection between Louisiana and France.”

The Stade de France was built in 1998 when the country hosted the World Cup. It was also used for the 2024 Olympics and has hosted several major international sporting events.

The NFL says it has more than 14 million fans in France and launched a flag football program there in 2023 that already reaches more than 8,000 boys and girls.

The NFL did not announce any of the teams for the game in Spain. The Miami Dolphins, Kansas City Chiefs and Chicago Bears currently have marketing rights in Spain as part of the league’s Global Markets Program.

The first NFL regular-season game in Spain was played at the Bernabeu last November as the Dolphins defeated the Washington Commanders 16-13 in overtime before a crowd of 78,610 fans.

NFL Spain country manager Rafa De Los Santos said the multiyear agreement to playing games in Madrid “underlines our commitment to the market and enables us to continue to engage fans year-round and invest long-term in initiatives like NFL Flag and youth participation.”

The NFL said Spain is “an important market globally,” with 11 million fans. It said it will also focus on developing the league’s flag football initiatives across the country.

After the first game in Madrid last year, there had also been talks of the league also trying to organize a game in Barcelona at some point.

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AP Sports Writer Talez Azzoni in Madrid, contributed to this report

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SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — The San Francisco 49ers are hiring former Atlanta Falcons head coach Raheem Morris as their new defensive coordinator in hopes of finding a long-term solution to a revolving door at the spot.

A person familiar with the decision said Sunday that Morris will join the Niners to replace Robert Saleh, who left San Francisco to take over as head coach for the Tennessee Titans. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the team hadn't announced the hiring.

ESPN first reported the decision.

Morris had long been viewed as a strong potential candidate because of his success as a coordinator and his ties to San Francisco coach Kyle Shanahan. Morris and Shanahan were on staffs together as assistants in Tampa in 2004-05, Washington in 2012-13 and Atlanta in 2015-16.

Shanahan had initially tried to get Morris on his original staff in San Francisco in 2017 only to be blocked by Atlanta head coach Dan Quinn and has long praised Morris' ability as a defensive coach.

Morris was fired by Atlanta last month after back-to-back 8-9 seasons as head coach for the Falcons. He previously served three years as head coach in Tampa Bay from 2009-11 with a 17-31 record and was interim coach in Atlanta in 2020.

While he has never made the playoffs as a head coach, he had a successful three-year run as a defensive coordinator for the Los Angeles Rams from 2021-23, helping the team win the Super Bowl in his first season. Morris has extensive experience as a secondary coach and even spent a few years coaching wide receivers in Atlanta.

Morris will be San Francisco's fifth defensive coordinator in as many seasons. DeMeco Ryans left following the 2022 season to become head coach for Houston before Shanahan cycled through Steve Wilks and Nick Sorensen the next two seasons before firing both.

Saleh, who was Shanahan's defensive coordinator in his first four seasons in San Francisco, returned in 2025 after a failed stint as head coach of the New York Jets and did a good job piecing together a capable defense despite having a unit hampered by injuries to players such as Nick Bosa, Fred Warner and Mykel Williams.

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