As final signing negotiations for John Harbaugh to become the new New York Giants head coach continue into Saturday, it appears only “language” stands in the way of completing the $100 million deal.
This “language” seems to transcend the Giants hierarchy and Harbaugh’s position. In Baltimore, he reports directly to owner Dean Bisciotti. Things didn’t go so well for the Giants. The level of their senior management makes it nearly impossible to have Harbaugh in East Rutherford.
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First, there are two main owners, CEO John Mara and Chairman Steve Tisch. They claim to “let go” until they don’t let go anymore. The most recent example is their decision to fire head coach Brian Daboll. After the decision was made, they notified general manager Joe Schoen.
Then there are other Marathas to deal with, such as John’s brother Chris and their nephew Tim McDonald, who serves as director of player personnel. All of this is before you get to Schoen and his assistant Brandon Brown.
Harbaugh has too many people to deal with.
Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News, who covers the Giants, noted that the trade was stymied by Harbaugh’s push for a clearer reporting process.
Rumors emerged Friday that general manager Joe Schoen’s role in this new dynamic could be a factor in the confusion.
Harbaugh has more influence now than ever before, and more influence than he will ever have again. Over the years, he has been involved in direct personnel conversations with former Ravens general manager Ozzie Newsom, one of the best to ever play the game, as well as Baltimore general manager Eric DeCosta.
Harbaugh, who has no personnel decision-making authority, has no reason to take the job.
During the Giants’ courtship, several sources told the Daily News they expected Harbaugh to either want Schoen gone or have his power diminished within the Giants’ new structure. So this is no surprise to anyone.
The Giants have been losing for so long that they should admit they don’t know what they’re doing. The best move they made in a decade was getting Harbaugh in the building. Now that they’ve accomplished that, someone within the organization has to put their ego and pride aside and let this guy do his job.
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The Giants have struggled the past 12 years because of incompetence, bad luck, and, frankly, disorganization. Maybe they finally realized it. But if it is, then why delay?
If it was Schön, they should fire him. He’s already gotten two undeserved reprieves, and if he was the mess here, Giants fans would be picking Harbaugh over him every day of the week.
This article originally appeared on Giants Wired: John Harbaugh insists: Are there too many cooks in Giants kitchen?