Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’re probably aware of the recent exchange between Jim Harbaugh and ESPN’s Chargers beat reporter Kris Rhim. But if you haven’t, here’s a quick TL/DR with accompanying posts from X:
- Following the most recent loss to the Seahawks in which Justin Herbert was consistently hit for lack of pass protection, Harbaugh raved about Herbert’s “warrior game” that he’s had a front row seat to for more than two seasons.
- Since this “warrior game” has only come about when Herbert has had to overcome incredibly difficult circumstances and an offense that has let him down more often than not, Rhim understandably asked Harbaugh why it was still happening after roughly 2.5 seasons under his watch.
- Harbaugh took the question as an insult and proceeded to answer the question with a complete non-answer, showing some disdain after being faced with some harsh truths
- Rhim and Harbaugh went back and forth before Rhim realized he wasn’t going to get a serious answer from Harbaugh
Here’s the post from Rhim with the transcript and a video of the exchange:
So I’ll just be blunt about it: This might be the most surprising presser for Harbaugh since he became head coach in 2024. And no, not the kind of cringe that accompanies the latest Harbaugh-ism or wacky metaphor we’re all used to when he’s on the microphone.
This is a coach who, early in his tenure in LA, made a media strategy of never actually answering any question with a direct response. There’s always a story, an analogy, or a metaphor that reaches out like it’s about to run the vault at the Olympics.
All of Harbaugh’s -isms have been eaten and enjoyed by his results over the past two seasons of 22 wins and two playoff appearances. There were some grudges and other things to question during that time but it all became largely irrelevant because of the results. Such is the passion of this business. At the end of the day, a coach can do whatever he wants, say whatever he wants, and be whoever he wants as long as he wins. With an 0-4 record to start his third season — on top of how the team went 0-4 — that’s no longer the case for Harbaugh, this fan base, and the media that has covered the team for the past two-plus seasons.
Justin Herbert is the greatest thing on God’s green Earth in Harbaugh. He’s the son he wishes he had and the most amazing football player he’s ever seen (or something along those lines, he’s said a lot about his quarterback since 2024). So it should be perfectly understandable that someone who has kept their eyes on every single move and decision this team has made since his hiring has a question or two about what happens when the team’s record is 0-4 in Three Years while Herbert is hitting at an alarming rate.
That is VERY understandable and should definitely be something Harbaugh should expect to address at some point this year. Instead, he acted shocked and appalled that someone would have the audacity to point out the giant, purple, fur-covered elephant in the room.
Bringing it back to the initial question posed by Rhim, he didn’t even point out any one thing. He even offered that he wasn’t sure what the issue was, but the truth is that Herbert is only showing you his “warrior game” because he had to fight hell in the first place. So Rhim pointed that out and followed it up with the “charges” placed on Harbaugh and McDaniel when they were hired by the Chargers.
Harbaugh’s charge is to protect Herbert with an efficient offensive line. This is the whole “tip of the spear” monologue. Right now, the spear has been broken multiple times in two years and there is no one capable of using it to protect his quarterback.
McDaniel’s charge is to make things easier for Herbert so he doesn’t have to be a superhero every game to give the Chargers a chance. The annoying thing here is that Herbert doesn’t have to be as heroic as the last two seasons because the defense is the same. Now, McDaniel seems to have taken the offense back a few steps and helped get Herbert back to his hero ball state of mind.
(General manager Joe Hortiz also deserves a ton of blame for his actions so far, but we’re sticking with Harbaugh as much as possible so as not to lose the plot.)
Both of these things are apparent and obvious when the team takes the field each week. So for Harbaugh to listen to Rhim’s words and still come away believing they were meant as an insult? That’s ONE THOUSAND PERCENT to Harbaugh for taking it that way. If pointing out an objective fact is insulting, then that tells you all you need to know about his inner dialogue. If Harbaugh believed he did everything he could to hold tight and accomplish the goal he was given, he would have explained how he did that and what may have been out of his control that led the team to this position.
And for those of you who don’t understand this concept, Harbaugh can still offer explanations and answer these types of questions without “throwing someone under the bus.” It is also possible that he himself is to blame because that is what leaders do. The buck stopped at him. No ifs, ands, or buts. Directly or not because of him, the team’s record and performance falls on him. There’s a lot of gray area in all of this, but at the podium and in front of the football world, it’s on Harbaugh. He knows this and I’m shocked as if he was shocked to deal with a lukewarm way.
Anthony Lynn went through it. Brandon Staley must have been through it. Tough questions come with tough times. If you are a well seasoned head coach, you should understand the game at this point. Play nice, the media will give you some underhand pitch and move on. Don’t play too much and you’ll be greeted with some fastballs you may not have been prepared for.
Either way, it’s up to you to take a calculated swing when the time comes.
Before I wrap this whole thing up, I just want to shout out Rhim again for having the steel in him to ask the questions that need to be asked.
It has become such an archaic mindset within the sports media space to bend the knee to teams during media availability and only ask questions that have no chance of ruffling feathers. Players and coaches need and deserve to be pushed. Regardless of knowing what their response would be, reporters still had to take a stand.
Respect is important for both sides. I don’t want to be oblivious to that fact. But if we are, again, being frank about all this, the way Harbaugh answered the question could also be viewed as disrespectful. If the head coach (can’t) answer as many questions as he wants, Rhim or any reporter has the right to ask questions he doesn’t want to answer.
And for the record, as much as Harbaugh wants to say he answered Rhim’s first question, he definitely didn’t.
Harbaugh isn’t likely to break down or change his strategy anytime soon, but he’ll feel the same pressure if things don’t change. In a results-based business, results should be free game to discuss, no matter how much the head coach or anyone else wants to pretend they aren’t in the name of positivity and morale.