Chicago Bears may regret not hiring Jim Harbaugh

There are a few reasons why the Chicago Bears might be better off without Harbaugh.

Was Harbaugh really ever available during the Bears search?

The Chicago Bears process to get a new general manager and the head coach was a roller coaster full of loops with zigs and zags between interviewing GM and head coach candidates. The Bears interviewed a lot of candidates. During this timeline, it seemed like Harbaugh was destined to stay at Michigan and compete for another chance to make the College Football Playoff.

What changed was the Vikings hired Kwesi Adofo-Mensah to be their general manager. It is reported the reason why Harbaugh became interested in the Minnesota job is because of his relationship with Adofo-Mensah. Both worked together during the time they spent with the San Francisco 49ers.

The Bears did interview Adofo-Mensah for the general manager. There must have been something the Bears search committee did not like with Adofo-Mensah. He did not make it to the second round in the Bears’ interview process.

Going with Poles as general manager probably ruled out Harbaugh as Poles does not seem to have a connection to Harbaugh. Now some may argue the Bears should have moved heaven and earth to get Harbaugh and let him pick the general manager. Like it or not, the Bears wanted a general manager in place first.

Bears president and CEO Ted Phillips does have a relationship with Harbaugh when Jim was a player. At the same time, it appears Adofo-Mensah’s more recent ties are more appealing to Harbaugh.

Plus, all signs last week pointed to Harbaugh eventually signing an extension with Michigan. Something must have changed for Harbaugh to now want to change direction. This is more of reading the tea leaves, but it is interesting that Harbaugh chooses to interview on National Signing Day.

Either he is using this as a last-ditch negotiating tactic with Michigan or things have gotten so bad between the sides that Harbaugh is using an important day for Michigan football to jump ship.

Harbaugh would not have come cheap

There was some speculation that the reason the Bears chose to not consider Harbaugh is he wanted $100 million to be the head coach. According to longtime Chicago Bears insider, Hub Arkush that was not the case.

Still, Harbaugh was going to come with a hefty price tag. Harbaugh was probably in line to make at least the same amount of money as Michigan State head coach Mel Tucker got which was around $95 million over the life of the contract.

McCaskey has no problem spending money on players and having his fired coaches sit at home but he probably would have a problem forking over a lot of cash and power to a head coach.

Harbaugh wears out his welcome real quick

His personality has been reported to wear on teams and programs. He clashed with then 49ers general manager Trent Baalke which led to Harbaugh leaving San Francisco.

He was also frustrating the Michigan faithful up until this season. Prior to this season’s Big 10 title, Harbaugh could not beat Ohio State and struggled with in-state rival, Michigan State. There was a lot of talk of Harbaugh being ousted after last season.

Instead, he took a pay cut, and only after he beat Ohio State and took Michigan to the College Football Playoff did the entire Wolverine nation come to embrace Harbaugh.

Eberflus could work out

Eberflus might be the head coach a lot of fans do not want but he might be the head coach the Chicago Bears need. The Bears need discipline after a penalty-riddled season under Matt Nagy. Local radio host, Dan Bernstein reported that Eberflus being known for his focus on discipline on the field is what sold McCaskey on being the next head coach.

Sure, Eberflus loves acronyms (welcome to the H.I.T.S. era) and talks like your high school football coach. He comes across as energetic and passionate. His former players swear by him. He definitely fits the part of giving that run through a wall pregame locker room speech.

Yes, he is a defensive mind but Eberflus did say all those years spent stopping offenses can help develop an offense that works for Fields. He is willing to do the reverse-engineering that some of the Bears’ previous head coaches with a defensive background were loathed to do.

After four years of dealing with Nagy just focussing on the offense, the Bears could use a head coach focused on the whole team. Harbaugh can do that as well but he does tend to lean towards the offense. Eberflus seems committed to all three phases of the team and becoming the CEO-type head coach that works well in Tennessee and Buffalo.

Also, new Bears offensive coordinator Luke Getsy is a young, up-and-coming offensive mind. He understands quarterback play and could be the coach Fields needs. At the end of all this, if Justin Fields develops, missing out on Harbaugh is a moot point.