Jim Harbaugh might be getting the itch to return to professional football.
The Michigan head coach could be “tempted” by that possibility, according to a report in The Athletic, which cites both NFL and Michigan sources.
Michigan Wolverines coach Jim Harbaugh could reportedly be “tempted” to return to the NFL. Getty ImagesThis past season, Michigan defeated Ohio State for the first time in Harbaugh’s seven-year tenure in Ann Arbor and reached the College Football Playoffs. The Wolverines were decimated by Georgia, 34-11, on Friday.
The Wolverines had a 2-4 record in 2020 amid a pandemic-shortened season. In January 2021, Harbaugh took a pay cut on his base salary from $8 million to $4 million per year in accepting a four-year contract extension that was reportedly full of incentives. Details of the deal were announced in June.
Harbaugh, who last coached in the NFL in 2014 with the 49ers, may be interested in returning to the league in which he had a 14-year career as a quarterback. The question, however, is: Are any NFL organizations with head coaching vacancies interested in Harbaugh?
Urban Meyer described being fired by the Jaguars after 13 games as “heartbreaking.” Getty ImagesThe Jaguars have an opening after Urban Meyer was unceremoniously fired during the season. For Harbaugh to be any sort of fit there, the franchise would first have to part ways with general manager Trent Baalke, who feuded bitterly with the coach when both were with San Francisco.
Jon Gruden resigned from the Raiders during the season over insensitive emails of his that had been leaked. But Las Vegas has played well enough under interim head coach Rich Bisaccia, and he might earn the position full-time.
It has been widely expected that the Chicago Bears will part ways with Matt Nagy after the season. Getty ImagesThe Bears are widely expected to part ways with Matt Nagy and could be a possibility for Harbaugh, who was a first-round pick by Chicago in 1987 and spent seven seasons with the franchise.
Although Giants head coach Joe Judge has been reported to be safe, the team has continued to lose in embarrassing fashion in recent weeks, notably Sunday’s 29-3 debacle in Chicago.
Jim Harbaugh previously coached the 49ers. Corbis/Icon Sportswire via GettyVic Fangio may not be long for the Broncos job either, after three seasons at the helm.
Harbaugh, whose brother John has been head coach in Baltimore since 2008, coached San Francisco from 2011-14. Jim Harbaugh took the 49ers to Super Bowl 47, in which they lost 34-31 to his brother and the Ravens.
