Jim Harbaugh Hired as Head Coach of the LA Chargers
Photo Credit: AJ Mast, AP Photo
The Los Angeles Chargers hired Jim Harbaugh to be their new head coach on Wednesday after weeks of rumors and discussions between the two sides. Harbaugh, 60, is coming off a National Championship title as the Head Coach of the Michigan Wolverines, capping off a 15-0 season.
Harbaugh’s deal with the Chargers is for five years. The financial details have not been revealed.
Harbaugh is no stranger to the Chargers organization, as he was one of the quarterbacks for the franchise in 1999 and 2000, appearing in 21 games and starting in 17. As a Charger, Harbaugh threw for 4,177 yards and 18 touchdowns, with a 59.15 completion percentage.
Wherever Harbaugh has been a head coach, success has followed him. At the collegiate level, he led the University of San Diego to consecutive 11-win seasons in 2005 and 2006, led Stanford to an 11-win season and an Orange Bowl victory, and led Michigan to the College Football Playoff in three straight seasons, winning the most recent title this season.
As an NFL head coach, Harbaugh has a 44-19-1 record with one NFC Championship, all of which came during his tenure at the helm of the San Francisco 49ers from 2011-2014.
Harbaugh will be the successor to former Chargers Head Coach Brandon Staley, who many thought should have been fired last offseason when the team parted ways with Joe Lombardi.
This move won’t turn the Chargers into Super Bowl contenders overnight. The team is in one of the worst salary cap positions in the entire league and have plenty of holes to fill on their roster. As of now, the team is currently bottom-five in the league in terms of cap space, hovering around $45 million over the cap limit.
However, as long as Justin Herbert is the quarterback of this franchise and healthy, the Chargers will always have a chance to be competitive and win. Couple that with the fact that Los Angeles possesses the fifth overall pick in April’s NFL Draft, and the future looks bright for this franchise.
The franchise has one playoff victory in the past 10 years, coming in a 23-17 win at Baltimore in the 2018 Wild Card round. Last year’s playoffs saw the Chargers blow a 27-0 lead to the Jacksonville Jaguars, so Harbaugh is hoping to rewrite the script on the team’s postseason history.
