Giants Head Coach John Harbaugh Discusses Challenges of Building a Coaching Staff

Although New York Giants head coach John Harbaugh is no stranger to the trials and tribulations of being an NFL head coach, that doesn’t mean that some of the aspects of the job, particularly those that come with going to a new team, aren’t a challenge.

One such challenge–and one that has to be as close to perfect as humanly possible–is building a staff that supports the overall vision that Harbaugh has for the team, which is to build a perennial playoff contender.

“It's tough,” Harbaugh told Howard Eskin on The Howard Eskin Show. “It's funny because I've been talking to coaches, and one of the coaches was in Phoenix with his wife–they had planned this date. And he's actually been taking Zoom interviews for like three days. … So yeah, it's not easy, but there's a lot of really good coaches out there.”

Harbaugh emphasized that the goal is to find qualified coaches who fit the personality he wants for the team and who complement each other in their respective roles.

“That's kind of tricky,” he said, adding, “But then you don't get everybody you want because you gotta recruit 'em and they go other places. They say no, they stay where they're at, or they get denied. So there's a lot of moving parts there.”

Although there have been some reports of Harbaugh having filled out certain parts of his staff, the biggest position yet to be filled is offensive coordinator, a role that Harbaugh reportedly wanted Todd Monken, his offensive coordinator in Baltimore, to fill, only to lose Monken to the Cleveland Browns’ head coaching job this week.

Former Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken — Harbaugh confirmed that former Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken, who is now the Browns head coach, was someone he was very interested in for the Giants offensive coordinator role. | Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images

“I had Todd lined up 'cause I know Todd inside and out as a person, football, and type of man he is–great respect for him,” Harbaugh told Eskin.

“I know that he was gonna run a very diverse offense and he was gonna be a great fit for (quarterback) Jaxson Dart–he knew Todd all the way back from college,” Harbaugh added.

“Then he gets the Browns job, so it's like, ‘Here we go, we're starting over.’ So now I need to look these guys up. … Alright, who's this gonna be now? And who can we get?”

Thus far, the Giants have been linked to Broncos pass game coordinator Davis Webb, Colts offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter, and Colts quarterbacks coach Alex Tanney for the offensive coordinator role.

“I don't want a one-system guy who has his fits, and then we gotta build all the players to fit his system,” Harbaugh told Eskin regarding what he’s looking for in an offensive coordinator.

“I want a guy that can look at our players and say, ‘Okay, because Jaxson Dart can live in different roles–he can be under center, he can play action, he can drop back in the gun, he can run the RPOs…I like all the different things he can do.’ So I wanna have a coach that reflects that.”

That guy is out there; it’s just a matter of whether Harbaugh and the Giants can get him.

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