In firing Chip Kelly last week, Eagles owner Jeff Lurie set himself up to make a quick move.
But his top target probably isn’t anywhere close to being available to him.
According to Paul Domowitch of the Philadelphia Daily News, the name atop the Eagles owner’s wish list along with Saints coach Sean Payton is Ravens coach John Harbaugh.
While that seems to come out of the blue, Harbaugh has deep ties to Philadelphia from his 10 years there as an assistant, so the feelings are strong.
But there has been no indication the Ravens want to part ways with Harbaugh after this year’s 5-11 campaign, and a league source tells PFT it won’t happen.
But the report notes that Harbaugh has two years left on his contract, and that Raavens General Manager Ozzie Newsome “doesn’t seem to have any interest in letting him out of the final two years of his contract, even if the Eagles were willing to offer a compensation package and Harbaugh was willing to go.”
It could be that Lurie’s years-long wish list is just now being known, because to target another team’s coach would be poor form. Or it could be that someone close to Harbaugh is hoping the Ravens realize there might be interest in him elsewhere, and perhaps adjust his compensation accordingly.