John Harbaugh will coach the Ravens next year. Unless he won’t.
Jay Glazer of FOX reports that multiple teams currently are considering whether to contact the Ravens in an effort to trade, as a practical matter, for the man who has coached the team since 2008.
Glazer didn’t identify any specific teams, but PFT consistently has heard that the Dolphins and Broncos are willing to explore a possible deal.
So what would the Ravens want? No one has attached a specific price tag yet, but there’s chatter that the Ravens will want a pair of first-round picks. Nearly 16 years ago, Tampa Bay gave up two first-round picks, two second-round picks, and $8 million to get Jon Gruden.
Of course, Harbaugh has only one year left on his contract (then again, so did Gruden) -- and Peter King has reported that there’s a “real chance” Harbaugh won’t sign a new deal. Which would make him available at no compensation to the Ravens in 2020.
Still, if multiple teams want Harbaugh now, the Ravens could leverage one against the other and maximize their haul. If the Ravens are willing to explore the possibility of flipping Harbaugh’s contract for draft picks.
Given the intense value that the Ravens have placed on draft picks (no one has mastered the compensatory pick formula and process like the Ravens have), don’t be surprised if they ultimately pounce on a chance to make the team better in the long run by moving on from a guy who currently is committed for only one more year.
