For this to work, John Harbaugh is going to have to be worth every penny of the $100 million the Giants guaranteed him to save them.
For this to work, Harbaugh is going to have to be what he has been and even more than that to get the Giants to refresh the franchise from its prolonged malaise. Harbaugh will have to put all his head coach skills to use to keep the Giants playing after the 2026 regular season has expired.
He will have to take an already impressive, Hall of Fame caliber résumé and make it look even better. At this time, next year, Harbaugh will have to be viewed as something of a miracle worker if the Giants are to be one of the NFL’s most improved teams. He will have to be considered in early 2027 what Mike Vrabel and Mike Macdonald are at this very moment: Among the heavy favorites to win Coach of the Year.
The Seahawks were 10-7 in 2024 in Macdonald’s rookie season and took a big, big step forward in 2025 to reach Super Bowl 2026. Vrabel after six years as the Titans head coach was a consultant in Cleveland, of all places, in 2024 before returning to New England to lead the Patriots. There has been no better coaching job in the league this season, as he took the Patriots from 4-13 to 14-3 and even though they are the underdogs for Sunday’s clash at Levi’s Stadium, there is no reason to think Vrabel’s club cannot win.