The New York Giants are hosting former Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh at the Quest Diagnostics Center in East Rutherford today with many reports indicating that Big Blue intends to make sure the Super Bowl winning head coach doesn't leave the building.
It is believed that the Giants are one of three teams in the mix for Harbaugh; the Atlanta Falcons and Tennessee Titans are also in pursuit.
Give the Giants a tone of credit. No matter how things go today, they have turned over every stone to make sure that Harbaugh feels comfortable with them. From extensive phone calls with John Mara and Joe Schoen, to a lunch last Sunday with Chris Mara, and phone calls from the likes of Tom Coughlin, Eli Manning, and even Brian Daboll to give the former Ravens coach an insight into the goings on inside the organization.
Just the fact that Daboll was willing and able to speak to his potential successor about the job he once held only three months ago, speaks volumes about the kind of respect he has for the Giants organization and vice versa.
Now it is up to the Mara's, co-owner Steve Tisch, and Schoen to fine tune their case to Harbaugh, iron out details in the contract and get it done. Word is from Ian O'Connor of the New York Times and the Athletic, the Giants are willing to meet Harbaugh's demands, perhaps matching Andy Reid's $20 million AAV he makes out in Kansas City.
The Giants need a injection of life in the building and Harbaugh will do just that. He will give the Giants the kind of legitimacy they have not had since Tom Coughlin patrolled the sideline 10-years ago.
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And let's be honest, for a franchise that once housed Vince Lombardi and Tom Landry as assistants back in the 1950s, oversaw the growth of Bill Parcells into a Hall of Fame Head Coach, and Bill Belichick as his top assistant, who, would become a Hall of Famer in his own right in New England, Harbaugh is the biggest profile coach to come to Big Blue without any previous Giants connections.
Coughlin was high profile when he took the job in 2004, after a successful run jump-starting the Jacksonville Jaguars, but he was a former Giants assistant under Parcells, and had a familiarity with the building. Harbaugh doesn't.
He brings 180 wins and a Hall of Fame resume already intact. For once the Giants are the ones looking to land the golden goose, and if all the stories about conversations, and lunches are true, then it would be a stunner if this doesn't get done.
The Giants right now offer Harbaugh his best chance to win right out of the gate. They have a good, young quarterback in Jaxson Dart, and some excellent skill players from Malik Nabers to Cam Skateboo. Their defense is full of talent and untapped potential.
While the Tennessee Titans can boast Nashville, simpler living and an easier tax burden. Cam Ward the number one overall pick last Spring had an uneven rookie year, and the Titans need a lot of work. They do have $100 million in cap space, and a capable GM.
The Falcons are a mess on the other hand.
It all depends on what Harbaugh values most, and how well he can jive with the Giants brass, particularly Schoen who is in a must win situation in his own right as he enters 2026 on the Hot Seat.
But for now, we wait.
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