NFL rumors: Chargers' Jim Harbaugh backup plan should get fans jumping out of seats

The fact the Tennessee Titans moved on from Mike Vrabel irks me. He should be a head coach in this league. While it has taken a bit longer than expected for him to get head-coaching interviews in this offseason cycle, he is getting his first with the Los Angeles Chargers. This is a team many see as the presumptive favorite to pry Jim Harbaugh away from Michigan. He loves him some Justin Herbert.

Vrabel's last two years in Nashville were frustrating to say the least. Most of that had to do with front-office instability, as well as an increasingly meddling owner. Amy Adams Strunk is proving to be her late father's daughter in the early years of her ownership. Firing Jon Robinson as a result of the A.J. Brown trade was odd. So was firing Vrabel less than a year after hiring Ran Carthon in the front office.

Basically, teams who are serious about winning games should take a good, hard look at Vrabel. Admittedly, getting Harbaugh to leave his alma mater at this stage of his career is easier said than done. He has also interviewed with the Atlanta Falcons, another organization hoping to make a huge splash at head coach this offseason. Whoever ends up hiring Vrabel is getting an absolute steal.

NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reported that Vrabel is visiting with the Chargers on Thursday.

ESPN's Adam Schefter later reported Atlanta and the Seattle Seahawks also want to speak to Vrabel.

Given that Vrabel's son Tyler just played in Atlanta, that is certainly intriguing. To me, Vrabel is the best fit for Seattle not named Dan Quinn. For Atlanta, Vrabel used to be Arthur Smith's former head coach.

Mike Vrabel would be an excellent hire for the Los Angeles Chargers

It really will come down to who the Chargers hire as their next general manager in the end. Tom Telesco did a good job, at least initially, of accumulating talent. The Bolts were always undercoached under him. That and players never being able to stay healthy led to the demise of the previous iteration of Chargers football. Vrabel is not a panacea, but he would fix their inherent mess quickly.

He has never got to work with a quarterback as talented as Herbert. Vrabel may be a defensive mind, but he knows good coaching when he sees it. He can be the ideal CEO-type that Harbaugh has been for years at Michigan. Ask yourself this. Would guys like Andy Reid and Sean Payton want to see a Vrabel-coached team twice annually in divisional play? Therefore, I think this could be a fantastic hire.

Ultimately, it is how you enter a job more than anything. Vrabel's stock has taken a hit over the last two years, whereas Harbaugh's has never been high. What that means to me is hiring Vrabel would be a way for Chargers owner Dean Spanos to cut corners in the hiring process. He could get as good of a head coach as Harbaugh without all the fanfare, and certainly not the same amount of money either.

Simply put, NFL teams like Atlanta, Los Angeles or Seattle need to hire Vrabel before it is too late.