01 November 2023 , 22:14
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The Las Vegas Raiders have been urged to do everything in their power to make Jim Harbaugh their next head coach after firing Josh McDaniels.
McDaniels and general manager Dave Zeigler paid the price for a poor start to the season, with the Raiders sitting out of contention at 3-5. Linebackers coach Antonio Pierce has been named interim head coach by owner Mark Davis, with the franchise set to hire a new head coach and GM at the end of the season.
NFL pundit Colin Cowherd believes former San Francisco 49ers head coach Harbaugh guarantees the Raiders will be rescued from the doldrums. Cowherd believes Harbaugh's track record, knowledge of upcoming draft classes, ability to make an impact and prestige could have a transformative effect on the franchise.
"For a dozen reasons and I'll give you a few, my first choice would be Jim Harbaugh and my second choice would be keep calling Jim Harbaugh," he said on The Herd. "He is the only coach, one in the country – one – that you know will work.
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"He worked four for four. Small college San Diego, bigger college Stanford, NFL San Francisco 49ers and big college Michigan. His dad was a good coach, his brother is a great coach, maybe it's in the genes. He always has a vision, teams get physical, he's relentless and passionate. He's the only coach you know that works."
Cowherd believes Harbaugh's knowledge of the college game – he is head coach of the third-ranked Michigan Wolverines – would be a huge boost to the Raiders as they add to their roster in upcoming drafts.
He explained: "Harbaugh would have a three-year advantage over the rest of the NFL in terms of personnel because when you come from a major programme and you are recruiting five-star and four-star players, you also know the guys you missed out on, not just the guys who came to your programme. You can get a huge advantage in your first three drafts out of college."
Michigan Wolverines head coach Jim Harbaugh has had a winner record everywhere he has coached. (Aaron J. Thornton/Getty Images)Harbaugh, who reached the Super Bowl with the 49ers in 2012 during a four-year stay in the Bay Area, has a strong record of making an instant impact on the teams he coaches, although the 59-year-old is mired in a sign-stealing scandal with the Wolverines accused of gaining an illegal advantage on their opponents by subterfuge.
But Cowherd does not think the controversy affects Harbaugh's allure as a head coach and he believes Allegiant Stadium is the right landing spot.
"Jim Harbaugh also turns things around quickly and that matters because Mark Davies is impatient," Cowherd continued. "When he went to the Niners, (they went from) six wins to 13 in six months. Michigan, five to 10 in six months. He is a quick turnaround artist.
"It also sends a message: 'We now want to compete with Kansas City, with Baltimore, we want to compete with the big boys'. Jim Harbaugh sends a message that they are looking for Super Bowls.
"Jim Harbaugh is clearly the answer. All we have here is a question, how good do you want to be? If you're paying this much money for Josh McDaniels not to coach, you are obviously smart enough to pay Jim Harbaugh to coach. Write some big checks."