It took longer than expected to dot the i’s and cross the t’s, but the Giants have their man. The Giants made the hiring of John Harbaugh official with an announcement on Saturday afternoon. He becomes the 21st coach in franchise history.
“We are proud to name John Harbaugh as the next head coach of the New York Giants,” team president John Mara said in a statement. “Joe Schoen presented us an outstanding group of candidates, which allowed us to be deliberate and confident in this decision. Through numerous conversations, John consistently stood out for his conviction and vision for leading a winning organization, and we welcome him and his family to the Giants.”
Harbaugh, 63, was head coach for 180 of Baltimore’s 276 regular-season wins in franchise history. Those victories led to 12 playoff berths in 18 seasons, including six division titles, four AFC Championship Game appearances and a Super Bowl XLVII victory.
Harbaugh’s 13 postseason victories are tied for seventh in league history and second only to Andy Reid among active head coaches.
“John is a proven winner whose teams are disciplined, resilient, and prepared,” Giants chairman Steve Tisch said in a statement. “His passion for the game, his ability to connect with players, and his experience leading at the highest level made him an outstanding fit for us, and we’re excited to move forward together.”
Harbaugh owns the most road playoff wins (eight) by a head coach in NFL history. Tom Coughlin, who led the Giants to two Super Bowl championships, and Tom Landry are second with seven each. Harbaugh is the only head coach to win a playoff game in each of his first five seasons.
“Throughout our conversations, John stood out for his clarity, competitiveness and approach for building a sustainable winning program,” General Manager Joe Schoen said in a statement. “He has a strong track record of developing players, building cohesive staffs, and setting a clear standard of accountability. We are excited to work with John in moving this team in the right direction.”
Harbaugh will report directly to ownership, which might have been part of the holdup in the “language” the sides haggled over for a couple of days. Nonetheless, Harbaugh now is the head coach of the Giants.
“I want to thank John Mara, Steve Tisch, Chris Mara, and Joe Schoen for the opportunity to lead the New York Giants,” Harbaugh said in a statement. “To serve as this franchise’s head coach is a tremendous honor. I come from a football family, and I have deep respect for the history and tradition of this organization.
“I’m excited to begin assembling our staff and getting to work building our team. I would like to sincerely thank Steve Bisciotti and the Baltimore Ravens organization for 18 remarkable years, including the opportunity to become a head coach in the National Football League.
“My family and I are grateful for the welcome we’ve already felt, and we look forward to becoming part of the Giants family.”
The Giants got the coach they wanted. And the coach got at least one of the key terms he wanted.
Via Albert Breer of SI.com, John Harbaugh will report directly to ownership. Previously (and for decades if not forever), the Giants’ head coach reported to the General Manager.
On Friday night, Ian O’Conner of TheAthletic.com strongly implied that Harbaugh wanted a parallel track to management with G.M. Joe Schoen. The Giants gave it to him.
To Schoen’s credit, he didn’t fight it. If Harbaugh thrives, Schoen thrives. The rising tide lifts all boats.
The tide will be rising in New York. As mentioned earlier today, Harbaugh went 33-18 over the last thee regular seasons — and got fired. If Harbaugh does that with the Giants, he’ll be canonized.
Curt Cignetti has engineered a remarkable turnaround as head coach of Indiana, with the program set to play for the CFP national championship on Monday night.
But don’t expect Cignetti to potentially do something similar in the pros.
Asked if he would consider an NFL job on Saturday, Cignetti dismissed the idea.
“I’m not an NFL guy,” Cignetti said, via Brett McMurphy of On3.com. “I made that decision a long time ago. I’ve always been a college football guy.”
Cignetti has been a coach at the college level for decades and he’s won everywhere he’s been, most notably at James Madison from 2019-2023 and now at Indiana over the last two years.
While money can talk, it doesn’t seem like Cignetti has any interest in trying to translate his success to the pros.
Every year, the coaching carousel precedes the quarterback carousel. There’s one quarterback who could turn the whole thing into a rollercoaster.
It’s too early to assume Lamar Jackson will absolutely, positively be back with the Ravens in 2026. He may not be thrilled with the ultimate selection of a head coach. Likewise, the team and Jackson may fail to get a mutually-acceptable contract extension in place before the start of free agency. Or Jackson may simply be ready for a fresh start, after eight years with one team.
Last month’s column from Mike Preston of the Baltimore Sun, which stirred things up (and which rang true in multiple ways), mentioned two potential destinations for Jackson: Miami and Las Vegas.
The Tua Tagovailoa contract, which carries $54 million in guarantees for 2026 and a $99 million dead-cap charge, will make it very hard for the Dolphins to give Jackson a market-level deal, even if there’s a sense in league circles that he’d love to get back to his hometown of Miami.
The Raiders are a different story. They have the cap space. They presumably have the cash. And they hold the first overall pick in the draft.
Some are wondering whether that would do it. The first pick, which would give the Ravens a straight shot at quarterback Fernando Mendoza (or the ability to re-trade the pick for a king’s ransom), for the two-time MVP who is now 29 and often injured.
Whatever the cost (and it’s unclear whether Jackson would have other suitors, given that no one called when he was available under the non-exclusive franchise tag three years ago), the Raiders arguably need to make a splash. Adding Jackson could lure other free agents to town. And it could go a long way toward getting current star players (Maxx Crosby and Brock Bowers) to stop wondering whether their skills are being wasted with a perennial basement dweller.
The key to a possible Jackson trade, from the Raiders’ perspective, is minority owner Tom Brady. Although Brady managed (somehow) to avoid taking widespread public flak for the abject failure of the franchise in 2025, he’s now front and center. If 2026 goes like 2025, Brady’s leather-glove-and-expensive-watch ensemble will be finished off with a front-office dunce cap.
Of course, the Ravens would have to be willing to pull the trigger. More importantly, Jackson would largely control the process, and the outcome.
Earlier this week, Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti explained that, while Jackson will have input on the eventual coaching hire, "[H]e has no power. I have the power.” As to Lamar’s future in Baltimore, Lamar has the power.
He has the power to refuse any/all offers the team may make on an extension, opting instead to play out the next two years, exit with a massive pile of dead money in his wake, and become a free agent (his contract has a no-tag clause). Jackson also has the power over any trade possibilities, since his contract includes a no-trade clause. (Obviously, that doesn’t mean he can’t be traded; it means he can only be traded if he chooses to waive it.)
In theory, the Raiders and the Ravens (or anyone else and the Ravens) could agree to the terms of a Lamar Jackson trade at any time, with the understanding that it will be finalized on March 11, the first day of the league year. If Brady wants to take a big swing and if Jackson is ready to take his bat and ball to a new city, it’s something to keep an eye on.
If it’s going to happen, it could (and arguably should) move quickly. With both the Raiders and Ravens looking for new coaches, Lamar’s future will become a major factor in both searches.
Bills offensive coordinator Joe Brady will call the team’s plays against the Broncos on Saturday and then he’ll pivot to other matters on Sunday.
Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reports that Brady will interview with the Ravens and the Falcons for their head coaching vacancies. Those are the first reported interviews for Brady in this year’s cycle.
Brady joined the Bills as their quarterbacks coach in 2022 and moved up to the coordinator job after Ken Dorsey was fired during the 2023 season. He was previously the offensive coordinator for the Panthers and was the passing game coordinator for LSU when they won the national title for the 2019 season.
If the Bills win on Saturday, Brady won’t be available for a second interview with either team until after the conference championships.
