NFL Reset: Team rankings, Jim Harbaugh’s future, Tom Brady and the QB market
It’s time for the practically annual conversations about whether Jim Harbaugh will return to coach in the NFL. A year after he was a finalist for the Minnesota Vikings’ job, which went to Kevin O’Connell, Harbaugh is nearly certain to be a candidate for several NFL franchises.
“It does appear that he might be in play,” a high-ranking official with one NFL team said.
The leaguewide interest in Harbaugh was relatively mild last offseason. He interviewed with the Vikings but reportedly was not offered the job and chose to remain at Michigan. He led the school to another berth in the College Football Playoff but suffered a semifinal upset loss Saturday to TCU.
“We’ve reached the annual ‘What will Jim Harbaugh do?’ portion of the year,” former Green Bay Packers executive Andrew Brandt wrote on Twitter.
Harbaugh has said recently he intends to remain at Michigan next season. But he also has acknowledged the sense of unfinished business he has as an NFL coach, having failed to win the Super Bowl during an otherwise highly successful stint with the San Francisco 49ers between the 2011 and 2014 seasons. He led the 49ers to three NFC championship games and one Super Bowl appearance.
The Carolina Panthers, Indianapolis Colts and Denver Broncos fired their coaches during the season. Harbaugh spent time with the Colts during his NFL playing career. He finished his career with the Panthers in 2001, although he never played in a game for Carolina.
Sean Payton, who won a Super Bowl coaching the New Orleans Saints and has been out of the league this season, probably will be a top candidate for any team that believes it has a realistic chance to hire him. But Harbaugh could be a high-profile alternative if he indeed explores an NFL return again.
Top five teams
1. 49ers: Their winning streak is at nine games, and the No. 1 seed remains a possibility. It’s pretty amazing the 49ers are playing at this level with an unheralded rookie as their third starting QB. But it’s almost indisputable they’re the favorite in the NFC.
2. Bills: Football-related issues are insignificant after the events of Monday night in Cincinnati. But eventually, the Bills will get back to them.
3. Bengals: The Bengals likewise were on the field for what happened Monday. It wasn’t a teammate affected, but their players will face a similarly difficult time processing those events.
4. Chiefs: That was the second time in less than a month that the Chiefs allowed the lowly Broncos to stay in a game with them. That’s not a great sign. This is mature team that knows how to win. But it will have to be at its best for a playoff matchup with the Bengals or Bills.
5. Eagles: That’s two straight losses while trying to wrap up the NFC East title and the conference’s top seed. Yes, being without Jalen Hurts matters. But he may not be fully healthy when he returns, particularly now that there is a pressing need for him to play this week. The Eagles are not at their best as the biggest games arrive.
Brady and the Raiders?
The Las Vegas Raiders’ benching of quarterback Derek Carr for the final two games of the season creates an interesting possibility. Could quarterback Tom Brady reunite with Raiders coach Josh McDaniels, formerly his offensive coordinator with the New England Patriots?
A reconciliation between the Raiders and Carr seems unlikely. The parties agreed Carr would stay away from the team for the final two games, a sign he probably will be released or traded in the offseason.
Brady is eligible for free agency this offseason. He has not said whether he plans to continue playing or retire and begin the broadcasting career he has lined up with Fox. He turns 46 in August. He has had an uneven season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but the Bucs won the NFC South. And there have been enough good moments – including Brady’s 432-yard, three-touchdown passing performance in Sunday’s triumph over the Panthers – to make a decision to continue playing viable.
The emergence of Brock Purdy seems to diminish the chances Brady could be a temporary option for the 49ers, even if they were willing to further postpone Trey Lance’s starting opportunity. Brady could choose to tie his fortunes to those of Payton. They share an agent, and the NFL punished the Miami Dolphins before this season for tampering with Brady and Payton. But if Brady doesn’t opt to play for Payton, playing again for McDaniels could be attractive to him.
Bottom five teams
28. Cardinals: The Cardinals have had four different starting QBs in the past four games – Kyler Murray, Colt McCoy, Trace McSorley and David Blough – and have gone 0-4. That’s versatility.
29. Colts: Make it six straight losses since they won Jeff Saturday’s interim coaching debut. There is almost no argument to be made that the Colts should consider him as their full-time coach.
30. Broncos: The Broncos made it close against the Chiefs in Jerry Rosburg’s first game as interim coach following the firing of Nathaniel Hackett. But the result was inevitable; they lost a 15th straight meeting with Kansas City.
31. Texans: The good news for the Texans is Bryce Young and C.J. Stroud look worthy of the No. 1 pick in the draft. But first, the Texans have to secure that choice.
32. Bears: The Bears have crafted the first nine-game losing streak in franchise history. The first year of the Matt Eberflus regime is making the Matt Nagy era look prosperous in comparison.
QB market shapes up
There was plenty of quarterback intrigue and movement last offseason. Brady retired and then un-retired, staying with the Buccaneers. Aaron Rodgers opted to remain with the Packers and signed a huge contract extension. Russell Wilson, Deshaun Watson, Carson Wentz and Baker Mayfield were traded. Jimmy Garoppolo unexpectedly remained with the 49ers.
There could be more of the same this offseason. Brady, Lamar Jackson, Mayfield, Garoppolo, Daniel Jones, Geno Smith, Sam Darnold and Teddy Bridgewater are eligible for free agency, although the franchise-player tag clearly is in play for the Baltimore Ravens with Jackson and for the New York Giants with Jones. Rodgers again must decide whether to keep playing. And, if so, he and the Packers must resolve whether that’s in Green Bay or elsewhere.
Carr and Zach Wilson could be traded or released. Jackson is at a contract impasse with the Ravens. The Patriots must decide whether they will remain committed to Mac Jones. Wentz has not been the answer in Washington. Tua Tagovailoa faces an uncertain future with the Dolphins and in the NFL based on health considerations after he suffered two diagnosed concussions this season.
The Raiders, New York Jets, Colts, Panthers, Buccaneers, Commanders, Saints, Arizona Cardinals and Atlanta Falcons seem likely to be among those in the quarterback market. The Houston Texans could be in line to draft the quarterback of their choosing with the top pick. Other teams could jump into the free agent and trade markets, depending on what decisions they make about their current quarterbacks.
It’s a two-QB league
It has been, in some ways, the season of the backup quarterback. Cooper Rush kept the Dallas Cowboys’ season from unraveling early while Dak Prescott was injured. Taylor Heinicke helped the Commanders regroup and get back into NFC playoff contention after Wentz struggled and got hurt, only to have coach Ron Rivera go back to Wentz for Sunday’s loss to the Cleveland Browns. After Lance suffered a season-ending broken ankle, the 49ers turned first to Garoppolo, then to Purdy, and they have retained their Super Bowl ambitions.
There aren’t enough franchise quarterbacks to go around. And more and more, a viable backup has become a necessity, even as the NFL has made rule changes in recent years to try to keep quarterbacks healthy and on the field.
On Sunday, the Raiders’ Jarrett Stidham and the Cardinals’ David Blough became the 63rd and 64th starting quarterbacks leaguewide this season. According to ESPN, that is tied for the second most in a season, behind only the 87 different starters teams used in the 1987 player-strike season.
Warren’s NFL candidacy
Big Ten Commissioner Kevin Warren’s candidacy for the Chicago Bears’ presidency, as reported by ESPN, could have some interesting implications. Warren has an extensive NFL background, most notably as an executive with the Vikings before he left for the Big Ten, and some in the league regard him as a potential commissioner candidate whenever Roger Goodell’s tenure ends.
Goodell’s contract runs through next season. NFL team owners have been negotiating an extension with him to keep him in the position a few years longer. One owner said in the fall, “That’s going to get done.”
Goodell turns 64 next month. He has endured off-field controversies over issues such as concussions, player-disciplinary cases and the league’s handling of its investigations of the Commanders and owner Daniel Snyder. But he has reinforced the NFL’s financial might with ever-burgeoning revenue, lucrative broadcasting contracts, unparalleled viewership and popularity and more than a decade of labor peace.
It is unclear whether Goodell’s contract extension will include a succession plan. There was speculation at one point that would be the case. But an owner said over the summer that was not expected, at least at that point. The league-office candidates to succeed Goodell would include Brian Rolapp, the NFL’s chief media and business officer, and Troy Vincent, the executive vice president of football operations. It is not clear whether the owners would attempt to recruit candidates from among former NFL executives such as Anthony Noto, now the CEO of SoFi, or Christopher Halpin, the chief financial officer of Interactive Corp., or among other business leaders.
Warren’s prospective return to the NFL might make it easier for the owners to include him on that list.
New head coach interviewing windows
As the firing-and-hiring season for head coaches nears, it’s worth keeping in mind that the owners enacted some rule changes in May that will slow the process a bit.
Under modifications made to the league’s anti-tampering policy, a team cannot interview a head-coaching candidate employed by another NFL team that misses the playoffs until the third day after the regular season. For candidates employed by playoff teams, the interview can occur on the third day after the regular season if the team has a first-round bye; it can occur on the Tuesday or Wednesday after the first-round games (depending on which day the team played) if the candidate’s team is playing.
Additionally, in-person interviews with candidates from other teams cannot occur until after the opening round of the playoffs.
Owners made the changes in an attempt to allow candidates to prepare properly for their interviews, in hopes of making the process more inclusive and thorough.