Raiders coach Klint Kubiak elevates Rob Leonard and hires Andrew Janocko as coordinators

HENDERSON, Nev. (AP) — New Las Vegas Raiders coach Klint Kubiak wasted little time in choosing his offensive and defensive coordinators since being hired less than a week ago.

Raiders defensive line coach and run game coordinator Rob Leonard was officially elevated to defensive coordinator on Sunday, and Seahawks quarterbacks coach Andrew Janocko will follow Kubiak from Seattle to be the offensive coordinator.

Kubiak did what the two previous Las Vegas coaches did in selecting a defensive coordinator — look within the staff. Leonard was the defensive line coach the past three seasons and added the title of run game coordinator in 2025 under then-coach Pete Carroll.

Carroll and his predecessor, Antonio Pierce, kept Patrick Graham in charge of the defense upon becoming the Raiders' coach. Graham now is the defensive coordinator with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

In retaining Leonard, Kubiak also could be looking for a way to mend ties with star pass rusher Maxx Crosby. Relations between Crosby and the Raiders became frayed when the organization placed him on injured reserve with a knee injury with two games left last season. Crosby left the team facility upon receiving the news.

Crosby, who underwent surgery last month, said during a recent appearance on “The Herd with Colin Cowherd" that reports he wanted to be traded came from other people and not him. But Crosby, wearing Raiders gear and speaking from the team facility, also did not deny such talk.

As for the 38-year-old Leonard, the Raiders allowed 3.9 yards per rush last season, tied for second in the NFL. They also were third in tackles for loss with 105.

The Raiders were in the middle of the pack in run defense in allowing 116.8 yards per game. But the defense often got worn down because Las Vegas was last in the field in average time of possession at 28:02.

The 37-year-old Janocko will receive a promotion in the move to the Raiders. He and Kubiak were on the Seahawks' staff, with Kubiak serving as the play caller for the Seahawks' Super Bowl-winning team.

Kubiak plans to still call plays, but made a point at his introductory news conference on Tuesday that it's not a one-man operation.

“I’ve never called the game by myself,” Kubiak said. “That’s something we do as a coaching staff together. We plan together. We communicate on game day together — quarterback coach, pass game coordinator, run game coordinator.”

Janocko worked directly with Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold this past season.

Darnold completed 67.7% of his passes for 4,048 yards with 25 touchdowns and 14 interceptions. Drafted third overall by the New York Jets in 2018, Darnold was considered a bust until leading Minnesota to a 14-win season in 2024. Then came another 14-win season with the Seahawks that culminated with Darnold hoisting the Lombardi Trophy.

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

FILE - Seattle Seahawks quarterbacks coach Andrew Janocko looks on from the sideline during the first half of an NFL football game against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Oct. 12, 2025, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack, File)

Las Vegas Raiders new head coach Klint Kubiak speaks during an introductory news conference at the NFL football team's training facility Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026, in Henderson, Nev. (AP Photo/Ian Maule)

FILE - Las Vegas Raiders defensive line coach Rob Leonard reviews a play on an NFL Copilot by Microsoft during the first half of an NFL football game against the Houston Texans, Dec. 21, 2025, in Houston. (AP Photo/Maria Lysaker, File)

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Nathan Chasing Horse was expected to be sentenced Wednesday morning for sexually assaulting Indigenous women and girls, drawing to a close a case that sent shock waves through Indian Country.

The sentencing of the “Dances With Wolves” actor comes about a month after a Nevada jury convicted him on 13 of the 21 charges he faced. Most related to his conduct with a victim who was 14 when he began assaulting her. Chasing Horse was acquitted of some sexual assault charges.

He denied the allegations and his attorney Craig Mueller questioned the main accuser’s credibility, calling her a “scorned woman.”

He faces a minimum of 25 years in prison.

Following the trial, Mueller filed a motion for a new trial, arguing a witness was not qualified to talk about grooming and that the statute of limitations had expired. That motion was denied.

The sentencing wraps a yearslong effort to prosecute the former actor after he was first arrested and indicted in 2023. That initial arrest reverberated around Indian Country, with law enforcement in other states and Canada following up with more criminal charges.

The British Columbia Prosecution Service said Chasing Horse was charged with sexual assault in February 2023, though the date of the alleged offense took place in September 2018 near Keremeos, a village about four hours east of Vancouver. In November 2023, the case paused due to Chasing Horse’s charges in the United States, but resumed the following year.

After all of Chasing Horse’s appeals have been exhausted, British Columbia prosecutors will assess next steps, Damienne Darby, communications counsel for the British Columbia Prosecution Service, said in an email Tuesday.

The Tsuut’ina Nation Police Service in Alberta said in a statement following Chasing Horse’s conviction that a warrant remains outstanding against him and said that it is in contact with the Alberta Crown Prosecutors Office regarding the warrant.

Nevada prosecutors said Chasing Horse used his reputation as a Lakota medicine man to prey on Indigenous women and girls.

Deputy District Attorney Bianca Pucci told the jury that for almost 20 years, Chasing Horse “spun a web of abuse” that ensnared many women.

Jurors heard from three women who said Chasing Horse sexually assaulted them. The jury returned guilty verdicts on some charges related to all three.

Following his appearance as Smiles a Lot in Kevin Costner’s Oscar-winning film “Dances With Wolves,” Chasing Horse, born on the Rosebud Reservation in South Dakota, traveled across Indian Country to attend powwows and perform healing ceremonies.

Multiple victims described how they participated in his ceremonies or went to Chasing Horse for medical help.

The main accuser was 14 in 2012 when Chasing Horse allegedly told her the spirits wanted her to give up her virginity to save her mother, who was diagnosed with cancer. He then sexually assaulted her and told her that if she told anyone, her mother would die, according to Pucci. The sexual assaults continued for years, Pucci said.

FILE - Nathan Chasing Horse appears in court for his trial on charges of sexually abusing Indigenous women and girls, Jan. 20, 2026, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher, File)