Technically speaking, the Atlanta Falcons were the first NFL team to conduct an interview with John Harbaugh this offseason, but calling it an interview would be generous. It was a phone call with Matt Ryan and the front office, which is exactly what he's done with a few other teams who are interested.
The Falcons' decision to list the phone call is a bit bizarre, especially since none of the other teams who have spoken to him did. To me, it feels like a rookie mistake early in Ryan's time as the president of football, but luckily, it doesn't seem like the Super Bowl-winning coach was spooked by the mishap.
As John Harbaugh continues to gather information about his next landing spot, I’m told the Giants, Falcons and Titans are considered the favorites to land the former Ravens head coach at this time. pic.twitter.com/ukw3mKWKc1
— Dianna Russini (@DMRussini) January 13, 2026
NFL Insider Dianna Russini still reported that the Falcons are among the frontrunners for the Super Bowl-winning head coach, alongside the New York Giants and Tennessee Titans. The Giants were expected to be Atlanta's main competition for Harbaugh, but the Titans have come out of left field.
Falcons are still one of the leaders for John Harbaugh despite bizarre interview fiasco
Reports have surfaced that the 63-year-old is intrigued by the idea of coaching both Jaxson Dart and Cam Ward, but the sheer talent on this Dirty Birds' roster has them near the top of his list despite the QB woes and lack of a 2026 first-round pick. This team is built to instantly compete for an NFC South title, so he wouldn't have to endure the end of a rebuild like in New York or Tennessee.
Harbaugh reportedly wants to pick his own GM, and the Falcons are the only team of those three with a general manager vacancy. Longtime collaborator Chad Alexander is believed to be his desired GM candidate, but he overlapped with GM frontrunner Ian Cunningham in Baltimore for eight seasons.
However, the Giants are really putting on the full-court press. Since Harbaugh is making teams fly to Baltimore to meet with him, it's telling that Giants' executive Chris Mara (and the brother of owner John Mara) got lunch with Harbaugh and informally met with him at his house this past Sunday.
This report surfaced after the Falcons publicly reported their interview with Harbaugh, and there are others who firmly believe he'll end up in New York when it's all said and done, because he's their top choice, but the Falcons went from hardly involved to key players for Harbaugh basically overnight.
It's still very early in the process, as he has yet to take an in-person interview, so a lot can change across the next few weeks. For as interested as Harbaugh might be in the Falcons' job with them atop his list, it remains to be seen whether or not Atlanta will be his final destination.