Chargers News: Joe Hortiz, Jim Harbaugh Working On "Culture" Shift In LA
New Los Angeles Chargers general manager Joe Hortiz assumed the gig after a two-decade-plus tenure in various front office positions with the Baltimore Ravens.
During an interview with NBC's Pro Football Talk at the NFL Combine in Indianapolis a few weeks ago, he unpacked his relationship with new LA head coach Jim Harbaugh, and how the top two decision makers for the Bolts were looking to shift the club's culture.
"I actually knew Jim before John, he was our quarterback in Baltimore my first year there, and he beat me up on the racquetball court a couple times. I got to know him through John," Hortiz said. "I think we've always talked about the possibility of working together if he ever came back into the league and if I ever got a GM job, when I've interviewed elsewhere he's been at the top of my list... They interviewed us separately, so they were kind of working down both paths, and I think we both identified ourselves as the two guys [worth hiring] and I think the connection made it really easy."
"It is about the team, the team, the team, that is true," Hortiz added. "It's not just the 53 [players], it's the whole building. And you feel it, everyone's involved, everyone's pushing in the right direction, [the goal is] to win... It's really about the team, caring about one another and pushing each other to be great."
