Well, Joe Schoen has done it; he’s gotten the guy. John Harbaugh. Harbaugh, a former Super Bowl winner (XLVII) and 2019 NFL Coach of the Year, was viewed by most of the NFL community as the top head coach available on the market. Harbaugh was the Ravens’ Head Coach for 18 years and won six AFC North division titles, made four AFC Championship appearances, and holds the record for most road playoff game wins with eight. Harbaugh only had 3 losing seasons in his 18 years with the Ravens, which I would say is pretty great. So what could he bring to the Giants after another year of mediocrity?
OC: This will be the next big move to help QB Jaxson Dart develop. It has been an ever moving chess game of head coaches and coordinators on the move 4 weeks into 2026. Names on the rise: Davis Webb, Kliff Kingsbury, Greg Roman, Tee Martin, Alex Tanney and Jim Bob Cooter. The outlier is Charlie Weis Jr. Dart’s OC at Ole Miss.
Someone on this list will become the key component in 2026 to take Dart & his game to the next level.
Experience
As I have stated already, Harbaugh has lots of experience as a head coach in the NFL, and I fully expect that to be put to proper use. This Giants core is young and hungry. Harbaugh is the perfect mix of experience, discipline, and trust that all players should get behind easily. While Daboll was known for being a players’ coach, he was too emotional, and other outside factors (like Shane Bowen) impacted his legacy. The only thing that Harbaugh needs to get out of the way quickly, is this horrible losing culture surrounding the Giants. The Giants have the 2nd-worst record in the last 10 years, and in their last two seasons, they still have fewer wins than Harbaugh did in a losing season.
Elite Defense
When you think about the Ravens under Harbaugh, your mind goes straight to defense. Their list is absolutely loaded. Ray Lewis, Ed Reed, Marlon Humphrey, Roquan Smith, C.J. Mosley, Eric Weddle, Haloti Ngata, Matthew Judon, etc. The defenses for the Ravens are what made them such a polarizing team for the entirety of Harbaugh’s tenure.
The major problem with the Giants defense is that they just didn’t perform. Yes, Spider Burns had the 2nd most sacks in the league, but after all the hype about this team, it was so deflating to see them getting tormented every week. The pieces are there with Burns, Dex, Carter, Adebo, Thibs, Holland, Nubin, and Alexander. Harbaugh and his new DC need to emphasize a more smash mouth scheme and teach these players how to close out games.
Harbaugh would have won 3 to 4 of the games Daboll/Kafka lost in 2025.