John Harbaugh is only under contract with the Baltimore Ravens through next season, and there has been talk of him potentially coaching elsewhere in 2019 despite the team reaching the playoffs. If Harbaugh and the Ravens do part ways, the coach doesn’t want it to be via trade.
A recent report indicated that teams believe the Ravens could be convinced to trade Harbaugh this offseason. However, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network noted on Sunday that Harbaugh probably would not want that to happen, as that would mean his new team has given up assets — likely one or more high draft picks — to acquire him.
From @gmfb Weekend: The fate of coach John Harbaugh rests in the #Ravens hands, and they don't want to move him anywhere. Harbaugh is fine with 2019 being a contract year. pic.twitter.com/3qu9H0VwrC
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 6, 2019
“My understanding is that is not something John Harbaugh would be inclined to do,” Rapoport said of a coach trade. “Even if he wanted to change teams, which he doesn’t, he wouldn’t want to weaken the new team he is going to.”
The Ravens recently threw their support behind Harbaugh publicly and said they want to keep him in 2019 and beyond, but the skepticism has to be coming from somewhere. There’s a reason the two sides have not agreed to an extension yet, and there have been rumblings that the coach and front office cannot continue to coexist.
