Report: Two NFL teams believed to have interest in hiring Jim Harbaugh as head coach

The NFL’s Las Vegas Raiders and New York Giants are two team which could have interest in Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh, according to ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg. The shortlist of teams comes in response to an earlier report from The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman that Harbaugh could leave the Wolverines this offseason if the right NFL opportunity opens up.

While the Raiders job is currently open, following an ugly split with Jon Gruden midway through the season, the Giants job is still held by Joe Judge. Over recent weeks, he has joined the conversation with Chicago Bears coach Matt Nagy as the hottest seats in the NFL.

The reports of Jim Harbaugh’s openness to leaving college football for another NFL opportunity come after his most successful season to date with Michigan. A College Football Playoffs semifinal loss to Georgia ended the Wolverines’ season on New Year’s Eve.

Rittenberg, like Feldman, notes that Harbaugh previously lived on the west coast and that he started his career with the Oakland Raiders.

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Bruce Feldman reported Tuesday afternoon that Jim Harbaugh “might be tempted” to leave Michigan and head back to the NFL.

“I’d always heard from people who know him well that they thought at some point he was going to go back to the NFL,” Feldman wrote. “I didn’t think he would leave Michigan knowing he’d never won the game that matters most there (against Ohio State), but now he’s done that and won the Big Ten, it feels like the timing might be right.”

Feldman lists the Las Vegas Raiders as a potential destination. Harbaugh got his coaching start with the Raiders in 2002 as the quarterbacks coach. Rich Bisaccia is serving as Las Vegas’ interim head coach after Jon Gruden resigned earlier this year. It’s unclear if the Raiders are going to retain Bisaccia or not.

But the Chicago Bears could be another option considering he played there from 1987-93. Rumors are swirling about Bears coach Matt Nagy’s job status, and NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported Chicago could fire Nagy after its Week 18 game against the Minnesota Vikings.

Harbaugh has previous NFL coaching experience with the San Francisco 49ers from 2011-14. In those four years, he had a 44-19-1 record and led the 49ers to the Super Bowl in 2012.

He’s also in his third college head coaching job right now. Harbaugh coached at San Diego from 2004-06, at Stanford from 2007-10 and just wrapped up his seventh year at Michigan after taking over at his alma mater in 2015. In 14 seasons at the collegiate level, he has a 119-51 record, including a 61-24 mark with Michigan.

The Wolverines went 12-1 this year before losing to No. 3 Georgia in the Orange Bowl last week.