Jim Harbaugh, Raheem Morris Ranked as Top HC Hires in Poll of NFL Execs, Coaches

Coming off a national title at the University of Michigan and his past success in the NFL, Jim Harbaugh has been deemed the best coaching hire of this cycle by people around the league.

Per a survey of seven people conducted by The Athletic's Jeff Howe, Harbaugh was voted the top head-coaching hire, followed by Raheem Morris and Mike Macdonald.

Harbaugh received votes from six of the seven people surveyed, including four first-place votes. Morris and Macdonald were the only other hires who received at least one first-place vote.

The people surveyed included four "high-ranking" team executives and three coaches, and none of them worked for the eight teams that hired a new head coach to ensure an unbiased process.

The Los Angeles Chargers have had a franchise quarterback in place for five seasons, but they've only made the playoffs once. While there are a lot of reasons for their ongoing struggles, it's hard not to look at the issues they've had at head coach as the primary one.

Brandon Staley, who was hired before the 2021 season, got off to a solid start as a head coach. He was aggressive on fourth downs and seemed like he was building a program.

Things gradually fell apart over three years before Staley was fired on Dec. 15 after a 63-21 loss to the Las Vegas Raiders.

Harbaugh picked the Chargers to make his NFL return after spending nine seasons at Michigan. He's got an excellent track record of building programs up dating back to his first job as a head coach at San Diego University.

Between college and the NFL, Harbaugh owns a 188-71-1 record as a head coach. He led the San Francisco 49ers to three straight NFC Championship Games from 2011 to '13 and an appearance in Super Bowl 47.

The only person who didn't include Harbaugh on their ballot was an executive who was skeptical of his ability to adapt his offensive approach to be more pass-oriented since that's where the NFL is at right now.

"Not sure about how that will work. A lot of hype," the executive told Howe. "We'll see."

Morris is back as a head coach for the first time in 13 years. The 47-year-old was hired by the Atlanta Falcons after spending the past three seasons as the Los Angeles Rams' defensive coordinator.

The Falcons' decision to hire Morris was widely celebrated, including by two of the best head coaches in the NFL.

49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan, who worked with Morris in Atlanta and Washington, called his hiring "way past due." Morris hasn't been a head coach since his three-year stint with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers ended in January 2012. He went 17-31 with the Bucs.

Macdonald had a meteoric rise up the coaching ranks thanks to his work as Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator over the past two seasons. They ranked in the top three in scoring defense in both years, including allowing a league-low 16.5 points per game this season.

The Seattle Seahawks, who have to contend with the Rams and 49ers in the NFC West, are hoping Macdonald can turn around a defense that has finished 25th in points allowed per game in each of the past two seasons.

Dave Canales of the Carolina Panthers and Antonio Pierce of the Las Vegas Raiders were the only coaches who didn't receive any votes.

Canales might have the most difficult job of anyone hired during this cycle. He's being tasked with fixing a roster that was arguably the worst in the NFL this season and doesn't have a first-round draft pick to add a blue-chip player.

There are also growing concerns about David Tepper's temperament as it pertains to owning an NFL franchise.