When you've been enduring a Tennessee Titans coaching search headlined by names like Matt Nagy and Raheem Morris, John Harbaugh's availability certainly raises eyebrows. The former head coach was fired by the Baltimore Ravens on Tuesday after failing to reach the playoffs in a season with sky-high expectations.
Especially in a relatively underwhelming crop of candidates, Harbaugh will immediately become one of the top options on the market. The Titans must move quickly to make him their next head coach.
Opportunities like this don't come around often. This is the type of hire that could change the course of a franchise. The Titans should do whatever it takes to bring Harbaugh to Tennessee.
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The Titans moved on from their most stable coach in years when they parted ways with Mike Vrabel. Since then, the franchise has taken an alarmingly steep downward turn, resulting in back-to-back three-win seasons. While Cam Ward showed promise in his rookie season, there's little evidence to suggest that Tennessee is headed in the right direction if they don't nail this hire.
In a market filled with mediocre re-treads and unproven young coaches, Harbaugh is as close to a sure thing as any team will find. He has led the Ravens to over two decades of consistent competitiveness, winning a Super Bowl and making 12 playoff appearances with Baltimore. Outside of Mike Tomlin, he was the longest-tenured active head coach in the league before he was fired. That kind of stability is almost impossible to find in the NFL.
Harbaugh is a "CEO" type of head coach, not controlling either side of the ball but focusing on the structure and success of the team as a whole. He brings with him a deep understanding of how a successful franchise operates, a valuable tool for the Titans.
The Titans aren't exactly the most attractive landing spot for head coaching candidates. We've seen coaches in the past pass up Tennessee in favor of teams in larger markets. So, the Titans are operating at a bit of a disadvantage here. They'll have to throw everything they have at Harbaugh to make themselves his top choice. Make him one of the highest-paid coaches in the league. If he wants to have partial control over roster decisions, give it to him. They can't afford to let this opportunity pass them by. If they do, they may end up getting stuck with another underwhelming head coach for the next two years.