During Harbaugh’s nearly two-decade-long tenure with the Ravens, which began in 2008, the Giants cycled through five full-time head coaches. The last four — Daboll, Joe Judge, Pat Shurmur and Ben McAdoo — have come and gone since Tom Coughlin’s resignation following the 2015 season.
Owners of four Super Bowl trophies, the Giants, established in 1925, are one of the league’s oldest and most esteemed franchises, but haven’t won or been to a Super Bowl since the 2011 season. Their success since has been minimal, with wild-card berths in 2016 and 2022 standing as outliers in an otherwise dreary 15 years since Coughlin, Eli Manning and Co. last hoisted a Lombardi Trophy.
Harbaugh will be tasked with returning New York to the perennial NFC heavyweight it once was.
Though the Giants are coming off a 4-13 season and have recorded just 13 wins over the past three years, the cupboard is hardly bare.
2025 first-round quarterback Jaxson Dart, who was part of Harbaugh’s interview with the team on Tuesday, is a dual threat who showed mountains of potential as a rookie. Elsewhere offensively, left tackle Andrew Thomas is among the NFL’s elite at the position, 2024 first-rounder Malik Nabers and 2025 rookie running back Cam Skattebo are both on comeback trails from season-ending injuries. Defensively, the Giants boast a noteworthy front led by Pro Bowler Brian Burns along with Dexter Lawrence and No. 3 overall pick Abdul Carter.
Harbaugh’s impact on the Giants is unlikely to be massive schematic alterations, but rather in changing the culture in the building and constructing confidence. Among his first orders of business will be assembling his staff.
Garafolo and Rapoport reported on Thursday that Todd Monken, who was Harbaugh’s offensive coordinator the past three seasons in Baltimore, will be part of Harbaugh’s new staff in New York.
Just how he works with general manager Joe Schoen in determining the team infrastructure will be a huge offseason storyline.
Harbaugh, who is taking on just his third NFL job despite coaching in the league for nearly three decades, is actually returning to the NFC East.
From 1998 to 2007, he was the Philadelphia Eagles special teams coordinator before he began a celebrated tenure with the Ravens in 2008.
Harbaugh holds a 180-113 regular-season record, the winningest coach in Ravens history by 100 victories. Under Harbaugh, the Ravens went to the playoffs in 12 of his 18 years, won six AFC North titles and won Super Bowl XLVII.
When the Ravens fell so far short of lofty expectations in 2025, however, he was dismissed.
His name was instantly attached to the Giants, seemingly a stellar fit: a celebrated veteran coach with a long history of winning and a renowned franchise long searching for the right general to march them back to prominence.
With Harbaugh having made his decision, the hiring cycle is sure to speed up, but all that matters in Gotham is the Giants got their guy.
