FOX Sports’ Ralph Vacchiano reports at least nine teams have expressed interest in former Ravens HC John Harbaugh as a head coaching candidate.
He says six of those teams had vacancies already, making it three who didn’t. Vacchiano added a source on a team hoping to make a big push for Harbaugh said at least one of the expected suitors is playing this weekend in the wild-card playoff round.
Pro Football Talk writes the two playoff teams people around the league are eyeing as candidates for Harbaugh are the Packers and Bills.
Vacchiano notes there’s been an eerie feeling that Packers HC Matt LaFleur might need to win a first-round playoff game to be completely safe, as he’s about to enter a contract year.
It’s believed that first-year Packers president Ed Policy will prioritize extensions for LaFleur and GM Brian Gutekunst this offseason, as he was supportive in a recent letter. However, it’s possible there could be issues finding a value both sides are happy with on a new contract given the rising coaching salaries.
As for the Bills, a first-round playoff loss and another year without a Super Bowl for QB Josh Allen despite a thinned-out field of quarterbacks in the AFC would not reflect well on HC Sean McDermott.
Vacchiano adds another source with one team currently looking for a new coach called the Steelers “an interesting dark horse” in the race to hire Harbaugh.
An assistant GM on a team looking for a coach also mentioned the Panthers, with owner Dave Tepper as an impulsive wildcard, and the Buccaneers to Vacchiano, although this was before Tampa Bay confirmed HC Todd Bowles would return.
“But you better believe that John Harbaugh’s name has come up in conversations in more than half the buildings in the league,” the assistant GM added. “You don’t think Woody Johnson wouldn’t at least think about firing [Aaron] Glenn if he thought he could land Harbaugh [with the Jets]? You don’t think Jerry Jones had at least a couple of conversations about him [with the Cowboys] at some point? Of course they have. If you have any reservations at all about your coach and a guy like Harbaugh is suddenly available, you have to at least think about making a move.”
Should the Steelers move on from HC Mike Tomlin, he’d have significant interest from the Giants as well, per Vacchiano. But New York is far less confident he’ll become available than they were about Harbaugh, he points out.
Per Vacchiano, Harbaugh is the No. 1 target for the Giants after they became aware that there was a good chance he’d become available. They believe they are high on Harbaugh’s list as well.
Vacchiano notes a Giants team source indicated Harbaugh hasn’t expressed that he can’t work with GM Joe Schoen, or that he wants more power than they’d be comfortable handing over.
If they can’t land Harbaugh, Vacchiano writes the Giants’ search will focus on candidates who have previous head coaching experience. Former Browns HC Kevin Stefanski is believed to be No. 2 on their list.
New York-based reporter Gary Myers was the first to report that nine teams showed interest in Harbaugh. He also adds there is genuine interest from Harbaugh in the Giants and he’s also heard Schoen is not an obstacle.
Myers adds Harbaugh wants to coach another 8-10 years and isn’t interested in taking a year off. He’s planning to take his daughter back to law school after holiday break and then dive into interviews next week.
There are conflicting reports about whether the Dolphins were one of the nine teams that reached out to Harbaugh before firing HC Mike McDaniel, but now that he’s gone, Miami is expected to be a strong contender for Harbaugh given the connections to owner Stephen Ross.
Harbaugh, 63, began his NFL coaching career with the Eagles in 1998 as their special teams coordinator and defensive backs coach. He spent 10 years in Philadelphia before he was hired as the Ravens’ head coach in 2008.
Harbaugh has been in Baltimore ever since and was the first Ravens coach to be named Coach of the Year following the 2019 season. He was handed a three-year extension through 2025 before the 2022 season, then signed another three-year extension this past offseason.
However, the Ravens elected to move on after the 2025 season.
During his 18 years with the team, Harbaugh led the Ravens to a record of 180–112 (0.616 winning percentage), which includes 12 playoff appearances and one Super Bowl championship in 2012. He has a record of 13-11 in the playoffs.
We’ll have more on Harbaugh as the news is available.
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