NFL Oakland Raiders

Oakland Raiders Must Think Carefully Before Trading for Jim Harbaugh

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By @Kevin_Saito

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

With every touchdown the St. Louis Rams hung on the Oakland Raiders on Sunday, the speculation about San Francisco 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh‘s possible future with the organization intensified. With reports emerging that the Raiders are willing to trade for Harbaugh, it seemed to be a foregone conclusion in the minds of many that he will indeed be Oakland’s next head coach.

However, trading for Harbaugh may not be the slam dunk many seem to think it is, and perhaps it shouldn’t be.

It’s pretty widely accepted that regardless of the outcome of the 49ers’ season, Harbaugh won’t be coaching the team next season. It’s also widely accepted that the Raiders are desperate to give him the keys to the franchise. Though his name has come up in connection with jobs at the University of Michigan and bizarrely the University of Kansas, it’s been reported that his family does not want to leave the Bay Area. This narrows down the potential job pool to say the least.

On many different levels, a trade for Harbaugh makes sense. The Raiders will be in the market for a new head coach about four weeks from now, and Harbaugh is a good one. He brings a track record of success, is a no-nonsense type of coach who doesn’t sugarcoat things, and tells it like it is. It could be the sort of tough-love attitude that the Raiders need to help pull themselves out of more than a decade of ineptitude –unless it doesn’t.

Amid all of the drama in San Francisco this season are reports that Harbaugh’s act has worn thin, and that his ego has forced clashes with the front office and his players. Some think he’s lost the locker room, and that friction is responsible for San Francisco’s troubles. But will the price to bring Harbaugh to Oakland be too high?

San Francisco has him under contract for another year, and at this point in time, they hold all of the cards. With the New York Jets also believed to be interested in trading for him, the 49ers now have the ability to ask for top dollar to part ways with their coach in the form of draft picks.

With both the Jets and the Raiders battling it out for the No. 1 overall pick in next year’s draft, a battle that Oakland is currently “winning,” it’s not inconceivable that San Francisco might try to pry it out of GM Reggie McKenzie‘s hands for Harbaugh. This is where the Raiders must be smart.

Harbaugh is an excellent coach, but is he worth giving up a high draft pick when they have so many needs up and down the roster? Even an excellent coach is going to fall on his face without playmakers at his disposal, and at the moment, the Raiders have precious few of those. Oakland is in full rebuild mode, and to rebuild, they must do it through the draft.

Not only that, but to acquire Harbaugh and keep him, McKenzie will likely have to give up some of his power and control over personnel decisions, and there’s no guarantee he’s willing to do that. Team owner Mark Davis is a Reggie guy all the way, but would he strip his GM of some of his power to obtain a coach of Harbaugh’s caliber? He might. Which would lead to all sorts of awkwardness.

Trading for Harbaugh is a move Al Davis wouldn’t have hesitated to make, but times have changed. Davis left the Raiders in shambles when he passed away, and the franchise is just now getting out from under the mess he left. Oakland desperately needs young, explosive playmakers if they hope to return to glory. They have a solid nucleus to build upon, but they must continue to add to it.

Kevin Saito is a fiction writer, sports junkie, history nerd, and NFL contributor to www.RantSports.com Follow him on Twitter, Facebook, or on Google

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