John Harbaugh. Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

John Harbaugh gets major control in five-year deal with Giants

By Adam Gretz | Last updated Jan 18, 2026 9:05 AM ET

It took a few days to get everything finished, but the New York Giants and John Harbaugh reportedly have a five-year deal that will make him the team's next head coach. He will also have significant control over the direction of the organization and what the roster will look like.

John Harbaugh will report directly to Giants ownership

Harbaugh and the Giants have seemed like an obvious match from the moment he was fired by the Baltimore Ravens, but the past few days have brought up a significant question of how much control he will have with the team.

According to a report from SI.com's Albert Breer, it will be a lot, and it will be a major change from previous Giants head coaches.

As part of his new job, Harbaugh will report directly to owner John Mara, giving him significant control over the franchise. It also creates some questions as to what sort of role general manager Joe Schoen will have, what sort of job security he has and how that relationship will go.

As part of the five-year deal, new Giants coach John Harbaugh will be reporting directly to ownership, I'm told. That's a departure from the norm for New York, and a concession made to the new man in charge.
— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) January 17, 2026

Schoen kept his job throughout the Giants' organizational changes this offseason, but it is pretty clear that ownership wants Harbaugh to have a big say in what the team looks like.

Their visions will have to align, or Schoen will pretty obviously be the odd man out. Not only because the Giants are willingly giving Harbaugh more control than past head coaches, but also because Schoen has already been in place through so many down years. Any sort of power struggle would almost certainly go Harbaugh's way at this point.

The Giants have had just one winning record in the past nine seasons and made the playoffs just twice since their most recent Super Bowl win during the 2011 season. Given that lack of success, some new voices and a new organizational dynamic might be for the best.

Adam Gretz

Adam Gretz is a freelance writer based in Pittsburgh. He covers the NHL, NFL, MLB and NBA. Baseball is his favorite sport -- he is nearly halfway through his goal of seeing a game in every MLB ballpark. Catch him on Twitter @AGretz

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