Jim Harbaugh

The Los Angeles Chargers, facing a cap crunch this offseason, chose to trade Keenan Allen to the Chicago Bears for a fourth-round pick rather than absorb his $23.1 million cap hit in 2024.

On Monday, the team's new head coach, Jim Harbaugh, said the situation worked out just fine for Allen.

"It's the business part of it," he told reporters regarding the trade. "And everybody does what's in their best interest. And Keenan, I mean, [you] make $23 million a year and play in Chicago, you know—who's got it better?"

It was a slightly impersonal take on trading a beloved franchise cornerstone after 11 excellent seasons with the Chargers, like a couple divorcing and one person saying, "Hey, it's not so bad—you're still getting the house."

Yes, the NFL is ultimately a business, and the Chargers chose to preserve cap space by moving on from Allen and fellow wideout Mike Williams while keeping edge-rushers Khalil Mack and Joey Bosa after the pair agreed to restructured contracts this offseason.

But there is also the human and sentimental element to the profession. Getting traded means a player has to uproot their family, a big change after more than a decade with a single team, and Allen was a six-time Pro Bowler for the Chargers. His loss will be felt.

In that regard, general manager Joe Hortiz told reporters that moving on from Allen wasn't a decision made lightly:

Yeah, I knew who I was trading. He's a very talented player and I respect him as a player, as a person. It's difficult when you have to cut a player, trade a player, release a player. It's always difficult for a player like him certainly, but it creates an opportunity for other players to step up. Again, we're not done building that room out so we're going to look to continue to add pieces to that room.

I think when you're talking about trading Keenan specifically, yeah that's not a decision you make with no acknowledgment of, 'This is a talented player that can still compete.'

Hortiz added that the Chargers approached Allen with "multiple different options and just none of them worked out" this offseason. But Allen's agent, Joby Branion, pushed back on that statement:

And Allen made it clear he had no interest in reducing his pay.

"There really was no emotion," he told reporters at his introductory press conference with the Bears. "It was, 'I'm not doing it. I'm not doing it.' Came off my best season, so it's not happening."

Allen set a career high in catches (108) last season while adding 1,243 receiving yards and seven touchdowns. Even at 31, he showed little signs of slowing down. And now he'll be a very well-paid, reliable security blanket for a rookie quarterback—more than likely Caleb Williams—in Chicago.

Not a bad rebound, in other words.

New Los Angeles Chargers general manager Joe Hortiz spoke highly of running back Gus Edwards while speaking to reporters on Thursday, comments that should pique the interest of fantasy football enthusiasts.

"I think specifically with Gus, I've seen him deal with the adversity of the [ACL] injury two years ago and come back from it," he said. "Grind, be physical, continue to play the same brand of football he's always played. Really excited to have him."

"He's the bell cow, the goal line [guy], the finisher," he continued. "The right mentality for what we're looking to do here. I told you we wanted to be bigger, play a physical style of football on both sides of the ball and he helps us do that."

Any running back on a Jim Harbaugh-coached team has fantasy relevance. The former San Francisco 49ers and Michigan head coach has always preferred a physical, run-heavy offensive approach. And if Edwards is indeed the "bell cow" and player most likely to get touches near the end zone, he could be in line for a big year.

Edwards, 28, has never rushed for 1,000 yards in his career, though he did have 13 touchdowns in 2023 for another run-heavy unit, the Baltimore Ravens. Don't be surprised if he has a very fruitful fantasy campaign in 2024.

The Los Angeles Chargers have long been a team predicated on a flashy offense, but the team's philosophy is set to change under new head coach Jim Harbaugh.

In his latest mock draft, The Athletic's Dane Brugler projected the Chargers to trade back from the No. 5 pick to the No. 9 pick to select offensive tackle Taliese Fuaga out of Oregon State.

In explaining the prediction, Brugler wrote, "It is no secret that Harbaugh wants to invest in the trenches so his rushing attack can be the backbone of the offense." During his time at Michigan, he built a gritty program that relied on a hard-nosed run game and a stingy defense.

The Chargers ranked 25th in the NFL in rushing last season with 96.9 yards per game. Conversely, the team's passing offense ranked 13th with 232.8 yards per game.

Fuaga is a versatile offensive lineman who can play both guard and tackle. In the latest draft big board, B/R's NFL Scouting Department ranks him as the No. 5 interior lineman in this year's class.

Brugler described Fuaga as "an ass-kicker in the run game and a natural right tackle, making him a perfect complement for All-Pro left tackle Rashawn Slater."

The Chargers are hoping to bounce back from a disappointing 5-12 campaign, so adding a blue-chip offensive lineman would be a step in the right direction.

Los Angeles Chargers defensive end Joey Bosa came away impressed after meeting new head coach Jim Harbaugh for the first time.

"We sat down and probably talked for 30 minutes, an hour a couple of weeks ago," Bosa said, via Jared Schwartz of the New York Post. "Great first impressions. … I have a lot of confidence in him and the staff that he's bringing around him."

The Chargers hired Harbaugh on Jan. 24 after he led Michigan to an undefeated season in 2023 that culminated in a national title. He also has several years of NFL head coaching experience with the San Francisco 49ers prior to his time spent in Ann Arbor.

Despite the eventual immense success, the Wolverines' final year under Harbaugh was shrouded in controversy. Football analyst Connor Stalions resigned after the NCAA opened an investigation into illegal off-campus scouting and sign stealing while Harbaugh himself was suspended for three games by the Big Ten.

However, there doesn't appeared to be any bad blood between Harbaugh and Bosa as the former Defensive Rookie of the Year played for rival Ohio State in college.

"I think he seems like a really genuine guy, which you don't find that a lot in coaches all the time," Bosa said, per Schwartz. "He's interesting. He loves football more than anything. I think all he wants to do is win. The way he talked about his feelings toward this job and toward the future was pretty exciting."

Now, Bosa and Harbaugh will attempt to help the Chargers return to the postseason after missing the playoffs in 2023.

University of Michigan safety Keon Sabb entered the transfer portal Friday, according to Griffin McVeigh of On3.

Sabb appeared in 14 games last season for a Wolverines team that went undefeated and won the national championship, recording 28 tackles and two interceptions, one of which was returned for a touchdown.

His decision to explore other options within the transfer portal comes after head coach Jim Harbaugh left Michigan to return to the NFL as head coach of the Los Angeles Chargers last month.

The 6'1" defensive back from Glassboro, New Jersey, was rated as a 4-star prospect by 247Sports, and the No. 96 overall player and No. 10 safety in his recruiting class.

He appeared in four games as a freshman and didn't accrue any stats, but he became a much bigger part of the Michigan defense as a sophomore in 2023.

Although Sabb never established himself as an unquestioned, full-time starter for the Wolverines, he had one of his best games in the College Football Playoff National Championship Game against Washington, recording a career-high six tackles and two pass breakups.

In the wake of Harbaugh's departure from Michigan, offensive coordinator Sherrone Moore was named the new head coach, which was likely a move that was popular with most players.

Moore served as Michigan's acting head coach for several games last season when Harbaugh was suspended, and he went undefeated in that role.

In addition to Harbaugh leaving, defensive coordinator Jesse Minter joined Harbaugh with the Chargers, which resulted in Michigan hiring former Baltimore Ravens and New York Giants DC Wink Martindale as the new defensive coordinator.

Martindale brings a wealth of experience and success at the NFL level to the table with him, but that may not be enough to convince Sabb to stay.

Although it isn't clear if Sabb has left the door open to return to Michigan, his entry into the transfer portal suggests he is likely looking to play elsewhere next season, and is perhaps looking for the opportunity to be a regular starter.

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.

The pre-game festivities for Super Bowl LVIII had some reminiscing on past experiences with the Big Game.

In the latest Well Off Media vlog, Colorado Buffaloes head coach Deion Sanders caught up with fellow Hall of Famer Peyton Manning and current Los Angeles Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh and spoke with them about positive memories from their experiences at the Super Bowl.

Manning referenced his first victory, which came in Super Bowl XLI and saw his Indianapolis Colts defeat the Chicago Bears 29-17. He said the rainy weather during the day and other adversity thrown the team's way made the win even sweeter.

"Playing in my first one down in Miami against the Bears," Manning said. "I had a great night's sleep, woke up, it was raining like a monsoon down there in Miami. We overcame it and to be a part of that first championship in Indianapolis was pretty special."

Harbaugh's memory was bittersweet, as it comes when he was the head coach of the San Francisco 49ers and his team fell in Super Bowl XLVII to the Baltimore Ravens, 34-31.

While his team fell short, he said the "fight" his team showed made him very proud.

"We got down 28-7," Harbaugh said. "Sometimes that can go one of two ways, mostly that ends up being like 48-7. The way our team responded and came back and where we had the ball on the five-yard line, down by five with a fresh set of downs. It torments me to this day that we didn't get it in the end zone."

Super Bowl LVIII would also go down to the wire, with the Kansas City Chiefs beating the 49ers 25-22 in overtime.

As Jim Harbaugh prepares to make his return to the NFL with the Los Angeles Chargers, he's motivated by his Super Bowl loss from his first stint as an NFL head coach.

Harbaugh coached the San Francisco 49ers from 2011 to 2014, where he led them to a Super Bowl appearance in 2012, losing to his brother, John, and the Baltimore Ravens. According to the Associated Press' Rob Maaddi, Harbaugh thinks about the loss every day.

"There's probably not a day that goes by that I don't think about that game and what we could've done down at the end, (7) yards away from getting into the end zone," Harbaugh said. "You leave that field and you go, there might be other days. Then you start thinking that might be the only day. Just wanted another shot at it, take another crack. My brother, my best friend, I love him, I'm proud of him. He earned that and he deserved that and his team did. ... When I say it motivates me every day, it's every day."

In the loss in Super Bowl 47, Harbaugh's 49ers fell just short, coming up shy of the endzone on 4th-and-goal.

Since losing in the Super Bowl, Harbaugh has found success at the college level, winning a national championship with Michigan last season, but now he's looking to win at the next level. He'll be using his first Super Bowl appearance as motivation.

Veteran running back Austin Ekeler has a new ally within the Los Angeles Chargers in the form of newly hired head coach Jim Harbaugh.

Speaking Saturday to Rob Maaddi of the Associated Press, Harbaugh praised Ekeler and discussed his desire for the impending free agent to return to the team in 2024:

"If things go well, it's going to be because of guys like Austin Ekeler and the players. I like Austin Ekeler. We're going to have a huge emphasis on the run game, and we gotta block better up front. He's a tremendous back and we'd love to have him on the team next year. But yeah, things go well, it's kind of because of all the players. If it goes bad, it's because I'm a bad manager, I'm a bad coach."

There seems to be mutual respect already between Ekeler and Harbaugh, as Ekeler shared some of the positive things he heard about Harbaugh and gave him some advice while speaking to the AP:

"I've heard great things about him. I've heard about he's a culture-starter, which is exactly what that team needs. My message for Jim if I'm on that team or not on that team is to make sure we're holding ourselves to a high standard and the culture is about holding ourselves accountable and holding other players accountable because I think that was lacking last year."

Ekeler also discussed his situation with ESPN's Field Yates, providing some insight into his status as an upcoming free agent:

The 28-year-old veteran said that while he would "love" to be back with the Chargers, he is keeping his options open and will consider any number of factors when it comes to potential landing spots, including the culture and his role.

After racking up 1,558 total yards and 20 touchdowns in 2021, followed by 1,637 total yards and 18 touchdowns in 2022, expectations were huge for Ekeler in 2023.

However, ankle injuries caused him to miss three games and limited him in others, and he finished with just 1,064 total yards and six touchdowns.

The Chargers struggled mightily as a whole as well, going just 5-12 and missing the playoffs after reaching the postseason in 2022.

Injuries played a role, as Ekeler and wide receiver Keenan Allen missed time, wide receiver Mike Williams missed nearly the entire season and quarterback Justin Herbert missed the final month.

Ekeler should have plenty of options at his disposal based on what he accomplished in 2021 and 2022, and while a return to L.A. is far from guaranteed, the arrival of Harbaugh could potentially help instill the type of culture Ekeler is looking for.