John Harbaugh\u2018s impending deal with the Giants will make him one of the highest-paid coaches in the league. According to Jordan Schultz, the contract is expected to be worth nearly $100MM over five years.
\n[RELATED: John Harbaugh Expected To Become Giants\u2019 Next HC, Pending Finalized Agreement]
\nIt\u2019s not a surprise that Harbaugh will earn such a lucrative payday; there were rumblings that the Giants were basically willing to pay him whatever he wanted. The nearly $20MM average annual salary would top the rumored $17MM annual salary he was earning in Baltimore, and it would rival the lucrative contracts signed by Andy Reid ($20MM\/year) and Sean Payton ($18MM\/year).
\nOf course, money wasn\u2019t the only reason that Harbaugh committed to the Giants, as it sounds like other suitors were willing to open the check books for the former Super Bowl-winning coach. According to NFL Network\u2019s Ian Rapoport, the Titans had an offer ready for Harbaugh and were willing to do whatever it took to get him in Tennessee. Harbaugh had a meeting scheduled with the Titans for this morning, and Rapoport notes that Titans leadership was indeed planning to fly to the coach\u2019s Maryland home today. However, the organization was informed last night that Harbaugh was finalizing his deal with the Giants.
\nHarbaugh did his research prior to his handshake deal with the Giants, reaching out to coaches, executives, and even former players. According to Russini, Harbaugh talked with Giants GM Joe Schoen everyday after he was let go by the Ravens. The coach also reached out to a number of the positional coaches from Brian Daboll\u2019s staff to \u201cpick their brains on the state of the roster,\u201d per Connor Hughes of SNYtv. To top it all off, Harbaugh even spoke with Eli Manning about the opportunity, according to veteran reporter Gary Myers.
\nNow, Harbaugh will be tasked with turning around a franchise that\u2019s only made two postseason appearances since their Super Bowl XLVI victory. Some pundits initially wondered if Harbaugh may avoid a relatively tough NFC East. However, Ian O\u2019Connor of The Athletic notes that when he pointed out that the Falcons and the NFC South would represent the easiest playoff path for the coach, Harbaugh\u2019s camp indicated that he wasn\u2019t afraid of the NFC East competition.
\nTo help him top the division and return to relevance, Harbaugh will have to fill out his coaching staff. We heard earlier today that Ravens OC Todd Monken was likely to join his former boss in the same role in New York, and a number of other coaches are expected to follow. According to Ralph Vacchiano of Fox Sports, Harbaugh will likely \u201cbring a lot of his Ravens staff\u201d to New York, and the new head coach isn\u2019t anticipating resistance from the Ravens. Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic echoes that sentiment, although the reporter warns that the Ravens may try to retain a handful of their preferred coaches.
\nHarbaugh may also be recruiting some members of previous staffs to New York. According to Hughes, Anthony Weaver is among the Giants targets for defensive coordinator. Weaver spent three years on Harbaugh\u2019s staff in Baltimore, serving as the team\u2019s defensive line coach. He was a candidate to replace Mike Macdonald as the Ravens defensive coordinator in 2022, but Harbaugh ended up opting for Zach Orr, opening the door for Weaver to leave for the DC role in Miami. Now, Harbaugh has a chance to reunite with the coach in his next stop.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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