How eager are the Dolphins and their owner Stephen Ross to get a new coach? Apparently, enough to shower Stanford coach Jim Harbaugh in ridiculous amounts of money. According to ESPN, Ross has flown all the way across the country to woo Harbaugh and plans to offer him a contract in the $7-to-$8-million-a-year range, which would make him the highest paid coach in the NFL.
The meeting is scheduled for the morning, but the 'Fins haven't even officially fired current coach Tony Sparano yet. Apparently, they want to make sure they can secure a quality coach before they pull the trigger, which isn't such a bad idea, but must be extremely awkward for Sparano.
Though the option of Harbaugh jumping to coach at his alma matter at Michigan is now seemingly off the table, he's also being pursued by the San Francisco 49ers.
Harbaugh wasn't reportedly that open to the Dolphins when they first sent signals they may be interested, but apparently he has warmed up to the idea ever since coming down to Miami and leading Stanford to a big victory in the Orange Bowl. Perhaps, it won't be his last big win in Sun Life Stadium.
Ross would reportedly expect Harbaugh to work with current GM Jeff Ireland and defensive coordinator Mike Nolan. Another possible candidate, Bill Cowher, was said to only be interested in the job if he could bring in his own staff.
We just have to wonder, if gunning for Harbaugh also means the Dolphins would also be down with some serious draft maneuvering grab Andrew Luck, Harbaugh's quarterback at Stanford and one the hottest draft prospects.
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