Jim Harbaugh’s Reported Contract Shows Chargers Were All In on Former Michigan Coach

Los Angeles seems to have paid a hefty price to get its new boss.
Jim Harbaugh’s Reported Contract Shows Chargers Were All In on Former Michigan Coach
Jim Harbaugh’s Reported Contract Shows Chargers Were All In on Former Michigan Coach /

The Los Angeles Chargers made little secret of their desire to hire Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh, successfully snatching the Wolverines boss away from his alma mater—and reportedly paid a hefty price to do so.

Harbaugh will be paid $16 million to chase the Chargers' first Super Bowl ring, according to a Tuesday evening report from Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.

Florio described Harbaugh's five-year, $80 million deal as having been handed out by a Los Angeles organization "stung by the perception that they’re cheap."

The ex-San Francisco 49ers coach’s winning percentage of .695 from 2011-14 ranks fifth in NFL history. All four of the names in front of Harbaugh on that list—Guy Chamberlin, John Madden, Vince Lombardi and George Allen—are in the Hall of Fame.

Harbaugh coached Michigan to the national championship in 2023, despite sitting out six games due to suspensions associated with allegations of illegal pandemic-era recruiting and in-person scouting against the Wolverines.


Published
Patrick Andres
PATRICK ANDRES

Patrick Andres is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. He joined SI in December 2022, having worked for The Blade, Athlon Sports, Fear the Sword and Diamond Digest. Andres has covered everything from zero-attendance Big Ten basketball to a seven-overtime college football game. He is a graduate of Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism with a double major in history .