Jim Harbaugh is the one name Chargers supporters are worried about when it comes to the team’s head coaching search. Strangely enough, while he is currently enjoying the Michigan Wolverines’ National Championship, Harbaugh is not one of the coaches that the Chargers have asked to speak with.
On paper, the Bolts appear to be the ideal team for Harbaugh to return to the NFL, and he is undoubtedly the Chargers’ best-case scenario hire. Despite the salary-cap issues, Los Angeles possesses the only available position with a franchise quarterback and a good core of young players.
However, the Chargers are not the only team vying for Harbaugh. The Las Vegas Raiders have also maintained close ties to Harbaugh, and Ed Dodds, a general manager with ties to Harbaugh, may soon be hired. As of this now, the Chargers, Raiders, and going back to Michigan appear to be Harbaugh’s viable options.
The Raiders have exactly one issue. Halfway through the 2023 season, interim head coach Antonio Pierce replaced Josh McDaniels and gained the backing of the locker room. The franchise’s star player, Maxx Crosby, has now joined Davante Adams in endorsing Pierce for the head coaching position.
Crosby is doing more than just endorsing Pierce. He is, as Ian Rapoport puts it above, drawing the boundary. I’m not sure what else could have been a clear message to the Raiders if that one.
Jim Harbaugh might be pushed by Raiders players to lead the Chargers.
On paper, the Chargers already appear to be Harbaugh’s superior fit, but this move solidifies that impression. In order to coach a team without a franchise quarterback in a locker room full of players who might not want to play for him from day one, Harbaugh shouldn’t feel the need to turn down the Chargers job offer.
This does not imply that Harbaugh will lead the Chargers in training for the upcoming season, since he might very well return to Michigan. However, it’s possible that none of the reports linking Harbaugh to the Raiders are relevant.
Harbaugh is undoubtedly someone Vegas should be interested in, and it wouldn’t be shocking if Mark Davis prioritizes hiring him. But despite of Davis’s wishes, the players ultimately have the power to influence this entire process.
And in the long run, that makes the Chargers the real winners. Chargers supporters may thank Pierce and the Raiders personally if Harbaugh ends up in Los Angeles.
