No Sales Pitch, No Tough Guy Act - Just John Harbaugh
Reading between the lines of Harbaugh’s Giants Introductory Press Conference
A new era officially began today, as a pack of sweaty reporters gathered around a field they’ve likely never stepped foot on to ask the new coach of the New York Giants some introductory questions — all while us real reporters stuck at our office jobs slipped an AirPod in and listened to the YouTube stream like real professionals.
At approximately 12:04 PM, Joe Schoen stumbled onto the stage looking like he was ready to shit his pants. This was puzzling, given the fact that we’ve seen him address the media under far worse circumstances with significantly more confidence (HE UNDERSTANDS YOUR QUESTION). Perhaps this is some sort of survivor’s guilt. I don’t know.
Shortly after Schoen managed to embarrass himself on the day of his greatest triumph, our guy John donned the stage. I was slightly concerned that he’d take a page out of the Joe Judge book and bring some bullshit tough-guy act to the podium. But I quickly realized that there is nothing performative about this guy. He is unapologetically a football guy’s guy, through and through.
He was happy, appreciative, and comfortable as he fielded some admittedly easy questions from reporters. He calmly explained how and why he wanted to be here — citing the historical significance of the organization, a strong roster, and the quarterback room (Jameis included). He even shared a fun anecdote about how his dad called him up early in the process asking, “You watch the Giants?”
We greatly appreciate the endorsement, Jack.
Harbaugh predictably kept things close to the chest in terms of staffing and his overall plan to develop this roster into an eventual Super Bowl champion. But aside from his well-known “attack this day with an enthusiasm unknown to mankind” mantra, he offered up this gem:
“If you love football, you’re gonna want to be here, because that’s what we’re gonna be doing — football. All the time. Every day. If there’s guys around that don’t love football, we’re gonna let those guys go play somewhere else. Because we’ll be doing football. That’s the plan.”
While a few too many characters for a t-shirt, his point was made, and I ate up every last crumb of it. It wasn’t forced, and he wasn’t trying to manufacture any sort of identity. He was explaining how he operates based on actual experience — not trying to convince or prove something to a fanbase that’s driven up Route 17 enough to spot a used car salesman.
My only gripe was not with Harbaugh, but with the aforementioned shill reporters. I get that everybody wants to kiss the teacher’s ass on the first day of school, but after spending the entire weekend pretending they knew exactly what was delaying the contract, nobody had the stones to ask John about it? Frauds.
While not a victory on the field (hopefully we get more than four of those next season), today further justified a reason for true optimism. This presser wasn’t littered with empty promises about turning the team into a perennial contender. We were simply given a peek behind the curtain of an established process with proven results.
When recounting a conversation Harbaugh had with Andy Reid — his mentor and someone who faced a similar career crossroads 13 years back — John said the only words of advice he received were: “Change can be good.”
I’m going to take Big Red’s word on that.
