I started a post last night about Jim Harbaugh that started like so: “It’s dangerous to post anything on Jim Harbaugh’s odyssey because the situation can change by the time we hit publish.”
Before I hit publish, the Dolphins “decided” coach Tony Sparano was the best man for the Miami job. (Or Harbaugh decided for them.)
Dolphins owner Stephen Ross wanted to bring Harbaugh back to Miami to introduce him as the next Dolphins head coach, but couldn’t close the deal. At this point, ESPN’s Adam Schefter no longer thinks the 49ers are a “viable alternative.”
That leaves Stanford as the most likely place of employment for Harbaugh in 2011. Including all bonuses and clauses, Stanford’s offer reportedly could be more than San Francisco’s $4.5 million-per-season. We know Andrew Luck is returning to school.
One more NFL team would like to enter the fray. Schefter writes that the Broncos are trying to arrange an interview with Harbaugh, although they face some obstacles.
The Denver Post says the Broncos don’t have it in their coaching budget to get into a bidding war. The Broncos also have a G.M. (Brian Xanders) and another football executive in place (John Elway) above the head coach. That would seemingly knock the Broncos out of contention.
But as we’ve learned this week, there’s no point guessing what Jim Harbaugh will do.