John Harbaugh 'Certainly' Among Falcons HC Targets, Arthur Blank Says After Morris Firing

The Baltimore Ravens' decision to fire John Harbaugh caught the attention of plenty of people.

Including, apparently, the Atlanta Falcons.

Falcons owner Arthur Blank told reporters Thursday that Harbaugh will "certainly be a candidate we would want to spend some time with" as the team searches for its next head coach after firing Raheem Morris.

But fans hoping for a coaching decision in the immediate future will have to be patient. Blank said the team plans on hiring the president of football operations first so whoever that ends up being can lead interviews for the general manager and head coaching positions.

Still, it comes as no surprise the Falcons would be interested in Harbaugh.

He is widely considered one of the best coaches in the NFL and enjoyed a period of incredible consistency with the Ravens. Baltimore made the playoffs in 12 of his 18 seasons and won the Super Bowl during his tenure.

Reaching the playoffs twice as many times as missing it during that long of a period is going to turn some heads, especially for a team like the Falcons that has not made the postseason since 2017.

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But the expectations for Harbaugh or whoever the coach ends up being will be to make the playoffs right away.

The Falcons, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Carolina Panthers all tied for first place in the NFC South at 8-9 this season, and the latter ended up being the division champions because of tiebreakers. This is a division that is incredibly winnable, and Atlanta has plenty of talent.

Harbaugh could surely find a way to maximize a roster with Bijan Robinson, Drake London, Kyle Pitts (if he returns), Jesse Bates III and others, although quarterback will be something of a question mark given Michael Penix Jr.'s inconsistency and injury history.

Blank said Thursday the plan is to bring Penix back, while it remains to be seen if Kirk Cousins will return as the backup.

Even with the quarterback uncertainty, Harbaugh has a history of winning at the highest level and would be coming into a division that is wide open if he took over as the head coach of the Falcons.

That is surely appealing to Blank and the front office, which is why the candidate is on their radar.