January 15, 2026
Tommy Gilligan/Imagn Images
Are the Giants about to be good again under new HC john Harbaugh?
John Harbaugh, one of the NFL's winningest coaches all time, is headed back to the NFC East – and this could be problematic for the Eagles, who gave him his first NFL coaching gig.
According to multiple NFL Insiders, the former Ravens head coach and Super Bowl champion is finalizing a deal to become head coach of the Giants, one of the Eagles' NFC East rivals who haven't been a threat to win the division in nearly a decade.
The #Giants will spend the morning finalizing a 5-year deal with former #Ravens coach John Harbaugh, making him one of the NFL’s highest-paid coaches. But Harbaugh has accepted the job, as the first opening is filled. pic.twitter.com/AG8s3tpPyz
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 15, 2026
Harbaugh, whose first NFL job was under then-Eagles head coach Andy Reid from 1998-2007, was recently fired as Ravens coach after almost two decades in Baltimore. In his 18 seasons there, he won a Super Bowl, made the postseason 12 times, finished with a winning record 13 times and produced a losing record only three times. The Ravens finished 8-9 record in 2025, losing to the Steelers in the season finale to lose out on winning the AFC North and making the playoffs, causing ownership to make a sweeping change.
Harbaugh's 180 regular season wins are 14th all-time among NFL head coaches and third-most among active NFL head coaches, not counting Mike Tomlin, who recently stepped down as Steelers coach.
Harbaugh's 13 playoff wins are seventh all time and second among active coaches behind only his mentor, Reid. His .609 combined winning percentage in the regular season and postseason is ninth-best all time for anyone who has coached more than 300 games.
Harbaugh inherits a Giants team that has one playoff win in the past 14 seasons and has missed the postseason 12 times in that span but has good building-block talent in 2025 first-round quarterback Jaxson Dart; 2024 first-round wide receiver Malik Nabers, who made the Pro Bowl in his first season before tearing his ACL this past season; a cornerstone left tackle in Andrew Thomas; and two three-time Pro Bowl pass rushers in Dexter Lawrence and Brian Burns along with 20225 first-round EDGE Abdul Carter.
Harbaugh's move to the Giants and NFC East could be a double whammy for the Birds, who just became the first NFC East team to repeat as division champs in more than two decades.
Reports indicate that Harbaugh will likely bring with him offensive coordinator Todd Monken, who coached with the Ravens under Harbaugh for the past three seasons.
Former Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken is expected to join John Harbaugh in New York with the Giants, per source.
— Dianna Russini (@DMRussini) January 15, 2026
This has always been the plan.
The Eagles, who on Tuesday relieved Kevin Patullo of his offensive coordinator post, are currently searching for a new play caller, and Monken was considered one of the top available offensive coordinators.
A hapless organization hiring an proven winner and Super Bowl champion head coach doesn't guarantee success (see: Las Vegas Raiders; Carroll, Pete) but Harbaugh has strong connections league-wide and created a well-earned reputation in Baltimore for assembling an outstanding all-around coaching staff.
Some of the NFL and college's brightest offensive and defensive minds have coached in Baltimore under Harbaugh, including Mike McDonald, head coach of the NFC's No. 1 seed Seahawks; offensive coordinator Greg Roman, the 2019 NFL Assistant Coach of the Year; defensive coordinators Dean Pees – who presided over Baltimore's championship defense in 2012 – and Wink Martindale; offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak, who later coached the Broncos to a Super Bowl title; along with two-time Super Bowl champion assistant coach Jim Caldwell and Monken, who won a national championship as Georgia's offensive coordinator.
Chargers defensive coordinator Jesse Minter, a candidate for 2025 Assistant Coach of the Year who's interviewing for current head coaching vacancies, also coached under Harbaugh for the Ravens from 2017-2020 and won a national championship as Michigan's defensive coordinator under John Harbaugh's brother, Jim, in 2023.
In Philly under Reid, Harbaugh coached alongside several future head coaches and coordinators, including Sean Payton, Steve Spagnuolo, Sean McDermott, Ron Rivera, Brad Childress, Pat Shurmur, David Culley, and Leslie Frazier.
The Eagles faced Harbaugh five times while he was Ravens head coach and went 2-3, but snapped a two-game losing streak in 2024 when the Eagles won in Baltimore, 24-19, in Week 13.
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