Jim Harbaugh announced Monday that he will remain at the Univerity of Michigan after flirting with a return to the NFL.
Harbaugh had been considered a top candidate for the Denver Broncos’ head coach opening, but he only had time for a virtual interview last week (every other candidate for the job has or will interview in person). Harbaugh’s camp also reached out to Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper multiple times in recent weeks, but the Panthers never set up a formal interview.
Two weeks ago, a person close to Harbaugh told The Athletic that Harbaugh returning to the NFL was a “done deal” if he got a job offer.
The details of this saga seem a bit suspicious. Harbaugh was supposedly so interested in a return to pro football that — according to one report — he simply needed an offer, any offer, and he’d accept an NFL job. Harbaugh (or his representatives) were also the ones that wanted the Panthers to get in the mix, and the interest apparently wasn’t mutual.
After the coach ultimately decided to stay at Michigan, Broncos fans have to be left wondering if Harbaugh simply wanted to use NFL teams as leverage against the school, with reports of his serious interest in an NFL job used as an attempt to show Michigan he really might leave.
That’s just speculation, of course, and Denver’s front office disagrees with that version of events. The Broncos “strongly believe Harbaugh’s interest in them was genuine,” according to a report from KUSA-TV’s Mike Klis. Harbaugh hasn’t received a new contract from Michigan — yet — so as of now, it’s possible that he truly did seriously consider the Denver job.
If reports emerge in the coming days of the Wolverines giving Harbaugh a new contract, though, it will be easy to connect the dots.
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