Should Cardinals Pursue Jim Harbaugh?
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Until something is solidified one way or another surrounding the job status of Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury, speculation will continue to run and rumors remain swirling until the public has an answer on his future status in charge.
Fairly or unfairly, Kingsbury has been criticized for Arizona's poor season and will only be buried further once the team is officially eliminated from postseason contention (barring a miracle, of course).
Thus, potential head coaching candidates such as Philadelphia's Shane Steichen have been suggested by many to be the next man in charge. Yet another horse could potentially enter the race.
According to NFL Media's Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero, NFL teams have been "doing homework" on the possibility of current Michigan Wolverines coach Jim Harbaugh as a possible candidate in the next round of hires.
"The NFL, it seems, isn't ready to close the door on Harbaugh.
"Sources say multiple NFL teams have been doing background work recently on Harbaugh, who led Michigan to the Big Ten championship and locked up a College Football Playoff bid with Saturday's 43-22 win over Purdue.
"One NFL source plugged into the situation said they believe Harbaugh would consider a return to the NFL, and a source with another team that could be running a head-coaching search said they believe Harbaugh would discuss an opening if asked and weigh the right situation."
The question is already swirling in many minds in the desert, so let's discuss:
Should Cardinals Pursue Jim Harbaugh?
This is all just a waste of time and thought if the Cardinals aren't going to seriously consider firing Kingsbury.
There's some varying opinions on that. Some believe owner Michael Bidwill simply won't pull the trigger and is too complacent, while others believe the problem is too big to ignore. Time will tell which side Bidwill truly leans towards.
Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio had an interesting take on Kingsbury:
"I think Kliff Kingsbury's in real trouble here," Florio said.
"Remember last year there was a lot of stuff swirling around Kingsbury, and then all of a sudden the team announces that he and [Steve] Keim have been extended through 2027, and we never heard a word about how much he's getting. How much is guaranteed?," he said.
"We don't know any of that stuff. That may have just been, 'Hey, we need to do something to put out this fire. I'm not prepared to make a major commitment. But we can say here's how long these contracts last even if they're not guaranteed maybe beyond 2024 or whatever the case may be."
If we had public knowledge of Kingsbury's deal and how it was structured, that would make this picture much clearer in terms of how easy it would be to get out of a fresh extension he just signed in the offseason.
There's been a few minor rumblings about Kingsbury's deal being laced with incentives, and that could be believable when you remember agents (Kingsbury shares an agent with Kyler Murray oddly enough) love to brag about how much guaranteed money was in a deal. We've heard/seen absolutely nothing in terms of numbers/figures on that extension: just food for thought.
But let's shift our focus back to Harbaugh, working under the assumption Kingsbury is canned.
Harbaugh brings quite the resume, as might just be the hottest candidate on the block if he becomes available. Finding success at both the professional and collegiate level, Harbaugh is very well known for leading the San Francisco 49ers to three consecutive NFC Championship games, one of which resulted in a trip to the Super Bowl.
Harbaugh has done excellent at Michigan in recent years after finally getting his footprint established, defeating rivals Ohio State in back to back seasons for the first time since 1996-97.
Referring back to the report from Rapoport/Pelissero, there's three key words in what would obviously be an important factor for Harbaugh's return to the league: the right situation.
Harbaugh would inherit a team with a franchise quarterback (that's already paid) with what should be one of the highest-flying offenses in the NFL and also gets the luxury of working with a (likely) top ten pick.
Key pieces exist at all position groups on the defensive side of the ball, too. That's not a shabby starting kit for a new regime. The Cardinals definitely qualify as an attractive destination.
Should Arizona pursue Harbaugh? Absolutely. The Cardinals have a roster many believe is capable of competing at this moment, and Harbaugh is a proven winner that can step in from day one and get the job done.
Dominoes still need to fall on both sides, but that sounds like a match made in heaven.
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