Report: Broncos Set to Interview Jim Harbaugh 'Early This Week'

The Denver Broncos head-coaching rumors are heating up.

So it begins. The Denver Broncos plan to interview the top two head-coaching candidates on the 2023 market. 

On Sunday, NFL.com's Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport reported that the Broncos plan to interview Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh in the coming days.

The Denver Broncos plan to interview University of Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh for their head coaching job early this week, per sources.

Harbaugh, 59, has been weighing his NFL options in recent weeks and now is set to interview virtually with Denver in the coming days, along with several other candidates. 

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It's curious that Harbaugh's interview with the Broncos will be done virtually, but if the two sides hit it off, I'd expect a visit to Denver to visit the facilities and get an in-person tour. Harbaugh-to-Denver makes a lot of sense, not only because of his coaching resume and acumen but also his connections to various shot-callers in the Mile High City. Rapoport and Pelissero lined those connections out. 

There are connections in Denver for Harbaugh. Condoleezza Rice, a member of the Broncos' ownership group and search committee, has deep ties to Stanford University, where Harbaugh coached before his first NFL stint. Greg Penner, the Broncos' co-owner and CEO, got his MBA from Stanford.

Harbaugh's history competing against Russell Wilson, and that base familiarity, could factor into this possible hire, one way or another. Either that experience, juxtaposed with Wilson's 2022 regression, will be an attractive lure to Harbaugh, or it could be the opposite. 

I doubt Harbaugh would take the Broncos interview if he didn't have at least an optimistic view that Wilson can be fixed with a few coaching tweaks and a new team culture. 

The Broncos have already spoken with former New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton, after receiving permission to interview him, but they can't meet in-person until January 17. If the Harbaugh interview goes swimmingly, I wonder whether Broncos CEO Greg Penner will wait until the following week to chat with Payton before making a hiring decision. 

After all, Harbaugh has made some serious passive-aggressive signals that he wants to return to the NFL and this time around, he's in high demand. The Indianapolis Colts head-coaching vacancy beckons, as it would, similarly to the Michigan job, represent a homecoming of sorts for Harbaugh. 

Harbaugh was Indy's starting quarterback in the mid-'90s and presided over the team that was bad enough to earn the No. 1 overall pick in the 1998 NFL draft, which led to Peyton Manning's arrival. It's not as if the Colts drafted Harbaugh, but he has a history there. 

Rapoport and Pelissero also report that the Broncos are expected to interview Dallas Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn, too. Quinn was purportedly a finalist for Denver's head-coaching job a year ago, coming up short when the Broncos hired Nathaniel Hackett to, some say, lure Aaron Rodgers out of Green Bay. 

Quinn has a history with Wilson as the Seattle Seahawks' former defensive coordinator, but he'd need to have the right coordinator hire in mind to woo the Broncos. Someone's got to fix Wilson, and while Quinn's football culture could be just what the doctor ordered, he's not an offensive guru or quarterback whisperer. 

Harbaugh and Payton are. In comparison to Payton, one big plus on the Harbaugh sheet is that the Broncos would not have to relinquish any compensation in a trade to hire him. On the other hand, Payton would require the Broncos to give up big draft compensation to the Saints — and CEO Greg Penner can't actually sit down with him for another nine days. 

Stay tuned. 

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