It's all sunshine and rainbows for Big Blue in mid-January. In just a matter of days since the 2025 regular season ended, the New York Giants found their head coach... and it's the one they hoped for all along. John Harbaugh is finalizing a deal with the Giants in hopes of righting the ship.
Harbaugh, a former 18-year head coach of the Baltimore Ravens, was relieved of his coaching duties after Baltimore fell to Pittsburgh in Week 18 due to a missed last-second field goal by rookie kicker Tyler Loop. Now, Harbaugh has already shaken the dust off his feet and is looking for a fresh start.
Unfortunately, Giants fans could learn the hard way why the Ravens let Harbaugh go.
We all know that the message got stale with Harbaugh in Baltimore, and the Ravens were due for a change. After a 1-5 start to the 2025 season, Harbaugh found himself on the hot seat back in October. Now he found a home in New York, where he'll be more appreciated.
Harbaugh was perhaps the most coveted name on this year's head coaching cycle. Meanwhile, the Giants are looking to escape the gutter after combining for just seven wins over the last two seasons.
John Harbaugh could raise the New York Giants' floor (but maybe not their ceiling)
If there's one thing we know about John Harbaugh, it's that he can get his teams to be competitive year in and year out. His demeanor and competitive nature should be enough for the New York Giants to see instant results in 2026, and this team could see its most successful season since 2022.
However, to make the Giants true contenders again is something Harbaugh might not be capable of.
Harbaugh's team in Baltimore steadily declined over his final three seasons. In 2023, the Ravens finished with the best record in the league and the number one scoring defense. One year later, as the defense started to regress, the offense found its stride—finishing as the top-ranked total offense in the NFL.
Unfortunately, Harbaugh's team spiraled on both sides of the ball in 2025, and it's clear that his defense felt the loss of former defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald over the past two seasons.
If the ultimate goal is postseason success, Harbaugh hasn't had much in recent years. Under Harbaugh, the Ravens have just three playoff wins over the last 11 seasons, and these came against the Titans (2020), the Texans (2023), and the Steelers (2024).
Now the long-time head coach will be without a two-time MVP quarterback as he joins a team that has struggled in the win column in recent years. At 63 years old and approaching two decades as an NFL head coach, Harbaugh might not be in the business of building up the roster with a long-term goal in mind. Instead, he may be prone to short-sighted decisions that help his team in the present (and potentially hurt the Giants in the future).
Not every long-time head coach with a brilliant track record works out on a new team late in their coaching career. Just last year, the Las Vegas Raiders hired Pete Carroll in hopes of taking a 4-13 team and making them competitive. Instead, the Raiders finished 3-14 with Carroll leading the charge. Ironically, Carroll and Harbaugh have nearly identical playoff and Super Bowl success.
We expect better results for the New York Giants with John Harbaugh as the new head coach. But at this stage of his coaching career, Harbaugh feels like a floor-raising head coach, not a ceiling-raiser. And for many Giants fans, that might be enough right now.