All in the Family: Chargers GM hire knows the ways of a Harbaugh brother

The Los Angeles Chargers made arguably the splashiest hire of any of the eight teams with a head coaching vacancy by hiring Jim Harbaugh last week off the heels of his impressive National Championship run at Michigan. 

Now, they’ve found their next general manager to pair with Harbaugh.

Los Angeles Chargers set to hire Joe Hortiz as general manager

Per ESPN’s Senior NFL insider Adam Schefter, the Chargers are in the process of hiring Joe Hortiz, the director of player personnel for the Baltimore Ravens, to be their next general manager.

The Chargers are working quickly to strike a deal with Hortiz following Baltimore’s loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game. 

Hortiz, 48, spent the past 26 years with the Ravens in various roles, which included a 16-year overlap with Harbaugh’s brother, John. So, working alongside a Harbaugh brother is nothing new to the new general manager for the Chargers.

As Baltimore’s director of player personnel, Hortiz handled college and professional scouting for the Ravens, but general manager Eric DeCosta had the final say in decision-making. Nonetheless, Hortiz has played a significant role in the draft success of the franchise during his time with the franchise.

Los Angeles has created the Hortiz/Harbaugh partnership to turn around a Chargers roster filled with talented players on both sides of the ball despite an underwhelming three-year stretch during the Tom Telesco/Brandon Staley era.

However, the division of power between Hortiz and Harbaugh will be an intriguing storyline to watch this offseason for the Chargers.

Per ESPN’s Kris Rhim, during Harbaugh’s previous NFL head coaching gig with the San Francisco 49ers from 2011-14, he had a “fractured relationship” with general manager Trent Baalke and the 49ers brass, which ultimately led to him becoming the head coach of Michigan.

The Chargers fired Telesco and Staley on Dec. 15, following the team’s embarrassing 63-21 loss to the Las Vegas Raiders on Amazon Prime Video’s Thursday Night Football.