In a not-so-surprising move on Black Monday, the Arizona Cardinals opted to part ways with head coach Jonathan Gannon after three uninspiring seasons that typically saw the Red Birds the laughingtstock of an otherwise potent NFC West.
The San Francisco 49ers, Seattle Seahawks and Los Angeles Rams can all express a bit of relief knowing their in-division rivals are poised for yet another rebuild, meaning the signs point to these three dominating the NFC West for the foreseeable future.
However, a good head-coaching hire could ultimately turn everything on its head out west.
Sure, Arizona will have its share of options. And there's even a concern the Cardinals could lure away the Niners' own defensive coordinator, Robert Saleh, after requesting an interview.
Ideally for San Francisco, such a development wouldn't happen. More preferably, the Cards opt to grab a coaching retread lacking an elite pedigree, perhaps someone in the mold of Pittsburgh Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith.
But, if Arizona looks beyond and proverbially "aims high," there's one name the 49ers and the rest of the NFC West would hate to see.
49ers want John Harbaugh to stay as far away from Cardinals job as possible
The Baltimore Ravens sent shockwaves around the league earlier this week by dismissing head coach John Harbaugh after an extensive 18-year tenure.
It might simply have been time for Baltimore to move on, sure. But Harbaugh's departure puts a top name out there in the coaching market, and he's already reported to have plenty of suitors requesting interviews.
The Cardinals should easily be one of them.
Granted, the Arizona job isn't the most desirable. It's a small-market team with almost no national presence, which already makes things tough to attract marquee players on the free-agent market. Couple that with an uber-competitive division, an uncertain situation at quarterback and a shaky front office, Harbaugh would likely need only a couple of seconds to dismiss any offer from the Cardinals.
That said, there's a decent enough sentiment from the Arizona side to go all-in on bringing Harbaugh out to the greater Phoenix area.
Should Harbaugh somehow be attracted to the idea, if for no other reason than to take a lower-profile job than what he might otherwise entertain (i.e. the New York Giants, Las Vegas Raiders, etc.), NFC West rivals like San Francisco would hate to see it.
Shanahan, the Rams' Sean McVay and the Seahawks' Mike Macdonald have already established themselves in the upper crust of coaches, and all three teams haven't exactly complained about the Cardinals being the butt of all divisional jokes.
Harbaugh would change that.