Earlier this year, the Los Angeles Chargers made the decision to hire Jim Harbaugh as the team's new head coach. Harbaugh's hiring came less than two years after the Minnesota Vikings chose to pass on him as their choice to replace Mike Zimmer and become the team's new head coach.
When it was first revealed that the Vikings were going to bring in Harbaugh for an interview back in 2022, many acted as though he was pretty much guaranteed to land the job.
But after meeting with the former Michigan head coach for multiple hours, Minnesota and general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah decided to say "no thanks" to Harbaugh, and instead, they hired former Los Angeles Rams offensive coordinator Kevin O'Connell to be the franchise's new head coach.
Could Jim Harbaugh get in the way of a draft trade between the Minnesota Vikings and Los Angeles Chargers?
As the Vikings look to figure out a way to move up in the first round of this year's NFL Draft to land one of the top 2024 quarterbacks, the Chargers have been mentioned by many as a possible trade partner.
Los Angeles currently has the No. 5 pick in the opening round of this year's draft, and they are in a prime spot to trade with teams like Minnesota that are interested in selecting a quarterback.
With Justin Herbert on their roster, the Chargers are certainly not in need of a new signal-caller, so it makes sense that the team's new general manager, Joe Hortiz, recently revealed that Los Angeles is willing to trade back in April's draft.
With the Chargers, the Vikings might be able to get away with only sending them picks No. 11 and No. 23 in order to move up to pick No. 5. However, should Minnesota worry about Harbaugh possibly not wanting Los Angeles to do business with the Vikings after they passed on him in 2022?
It might seem silly to some, but it's definitely a possibility.
Are the chances of Harbaugh getting in the way of a possible draft trade between Los Angeles and Minnesota high? That's for others to determine, but plenty of NFL coaches have been known for holding crazy grudges in the past, and it wouldn't be shocking if Harbaugh is still bitter about the Vikings not hiring him back in 2022.
It might even be a scenario where Los Angeles and Minnesota agree to the terms of a trade, but Harbaugh decides he won't let it happen unless the Vikings throw in an additional first-round pick from 2025.
The Chargers have been assumed as an easy partner for Minnesota to make a trade with this year in their efforts to move up in the NFL Draft. But with Harbaugh now leading Los Angeles, the Chargers might actually be one of the most difficult teams for the Vikings to work with.