Jim Harbaugh agreed on a five-year deal to become the Los Angeles Chargers head coach this past offseason. After winning the National Championship with Michigan, he returned to the NFL, and multiple teams might have wanted to make him their head coach.
However, the Chargers’ aggressive pursuit of Harbaugh paid dividends, and they now have a head coach who has completely transformed their franchise. Had the AFC West franchise not zeroed in on Harbaugh, he could have become the head coach of an NFC franchise.
Adam Schefter on Jim Harbaugh Accepting Chargers’ Offer
NFL insider Adam Schefter recently appeared on the This Is Football show and talked about Harbaugh’s return to the NFL. Schefter mentioned that the current Chargers head coach wanted to win everything in college football before making his eventual return to the league, and he didn’t hesitate in deciding after Michigan won the National Championship.
The ESPN insider also mentioned that Harbaugh could have become the head coach of the Atlanta Falcons if the Chargers had not played their cards right in the offseason.
“The interesting thing is, if we go back to last offseason, the only two natural landing spots, the two places that really were in play for him. It was the Chargers, and it was up to them to close the deal,” said Schefter. “If they hadn’t closed the deal, then he would have gone on and visited Atlanta, and Atlanta was a place that appealed to him. But Atlanta moved in on Bill Belichick and then changed course and decided to go with Raheem Morris.”
An unbelievable discussion about Jim Harbaugh and why he wins with @AdamSchefter plus I tell a beautiful Jim Harbaugh story invovling ex-White Sox GM Kenny Williams (!). Adam has a special on the Harbaugh Brothers coming up this week! pic.twitter.com/Z7rVyVPFzl
— Kevin Clark (@bykevinclark) November 20, 2024
“So I don’t know that Jim Harbaugh ever wound up becoming a serious candidate, in the end, a finalist for that job when, clearly, he should have been. And the truth of the matter is, to the Chargers’ credit, they didn’t let him out of the building. He went there, and they got the deal done.”
The Chargers effectively got the deal done and got themselves a massive upgrade over their former head coach, Brandon Staley. Harbaugh has brought the best out of Justin Herbert, and although he doesn’t have a star-studded roster, the 60-year-old head coach has turned his team into a Super Bowl contender.
It would be fair to say that Harbaugh could have had similar success with the Falcons, as the NFC South franchise plays in a much weaker division and a conference. Nevertheless, the Falcons’ move to hire Raheem Morris hasn’t turned out to be a disaster, as they are currently 6-5 and lead their division.
Harbaugh Will Face His Older Brother in Week 12
Harbaugh and the Chargers are 7-3 on the season and are currently on a four-game winning streak. They will face John Harbaugh and the Baltimore Ravens in what will be the third matchup between the Harbaugh brothers in the NFL.
The Chargers head coach recently discussed the upcoming matchup against his brother and showed great respect for the Ravens team. Both teams could also face each other in the playoffs, and the Week 12 matchup will go a long way toward predicting what these two teams could achieve this season.
The Ravens, who lost in the AFC Championship Game last season, are 7-4 on the season and have one of the best offenses in the league. They’ll be up against the league’s best scoring defense on Monday Night Football this week, and this game will be a marquee showcase for Lamar Jackson’s MVP chase.
Herbert is playing the best of his career under Harbaugh. Given how he played against the Bengals last week, the Chargers quarterback can exploit the Ravens’ pass defense (the worst in the league) in this fixture. A win against Baltimore will be huge for the team’s confidence.