Raiders hiring former Panthers RB, UCLA assistant DeShaun Foster as RBs coach

The Las Vegas Raiders are hiring DeShaun Foster as their running backs coach, Mike Garafolo of NFL Network reported Friday.

Foster, 44, has spent 11 of the last 12 years as an assistant on UCLA’s staff. He served the last six as running backs coach under head coach Chip Kelly. His lone season away from UCLA came in 2016 when he was the running backs coach for Texas Tech under then head coach Kliff Kingsbury.

Foster played running back for the Bruins from 1998-2001, rushing for 3,049 yards and 39 touchdowns. The Carolina Panthers selected him in the second-round of the 2002 NFL Draft. He spent five seasons in Carolina, compiling 3,336 yards and 10 touchdowns. He finished his playing career for the San Francisco 49ers in 2008 before transitioning into coaching.

During his tenure as UCLA’s running backs coach, three running backs were drafted: Joshua Kelley (2020), Brittain Brown (2022) and Zach Charbonnet (2023). He’ll now have the opportunity to coach one of the better running back tandems in the NFL in Las Vegas, Josh Jacobs and Zamir White. Jacobs led the league in rushing in 2022 (1,653 yards) and White rushed for 451 yards on 4.3 yards per carry during his sophomore season in the NFL in 2023.

Antonio Pierce filling out Raiders’ staff

Foster is the latest hire of head coach Antonio Pierce, whom Las Vegas gave the permanent job after he led the Raiders to a 5-4 record as the interim following the midseason firing of Josh McDaniels. Pierce and the Raiders are expected to hire Kingsbury as their offensive coordinator, Adam Schefter of ESPN reported Thursday.

Kingsbury, 44, last coached in the NFL with the Arizona Cardinals, where he served as head coach from 2019-22. Arizona fired him after going 4-13 last season and 28-37 overall under Kingsbury with one playoff appearance. He spent the 2023 season on USC’s coaching staff under Lincoln Riley, serving as senior offensive analyst and quarterbacks coach. Prior to his stint in Arizona, he spent six seasons as head coach at Texas Tech (2013-18). He led the Red Raiders to a 35-40 mark and three bowl game appearances.