Jim Harbaugh's new contract will pay him more than his brother and all but three of his Chargers players next season

Jim Harbaugh’s new contract with the Chargers will pay him more than his brother and all but one NFL coach. Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

• Coach Jim Harbaugh will reportedly make an average of $16 million a year with the LA Chargers.
• This would tie him for the second-highest-paid coach in US sports.
• He’d surpass his brother John’s annual salary and outearn all but three of his Chargers players.

The two happiest football coaches in the world might be whoever wins the Super Bowl on Sunday — and Jim Harbaugh.

In late January, Harbaugh agreed to return to the NFL as head coach of the Los Angeles Chargers with a five-year deal that will reportedly pay him an average annual salary of $16 million.

This would not only give Harbaugh a higher salary than his brother John — who’s making $12 million a year as the head coach of the Baltimore Ravens — but would tie him for the second-highest-paid coach in US sports, per the sports business website Sportico.

Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton earns $18 million a year, while San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich is tied with Harbaugh at $16 million. The highest-paid coach was previously Bill Belichick — who was paid an average of $25 million a year to coach the New England Patriots — but he and the team agreed to part ways in January.

Harbaugh is also set to outearn all but three of his Chargers players, per the sports contract database Spotrac. Wide receiver Keenan Allen, linebacker Khalil Mack, and wide receiver Mike Williams each have base salaries between $17 and $19 million in 2024.

Harbaugh’s return to the NFL was one of many high-profile football coaching changes in recent weeks — the retirement of former Alabama head coach Nick Saban also made national headlines.

When a coach leaves, it can create a domino effect that leads to raises for coaches across the country as teams and schools compete to fill their coaching vacancies — or ensure their current coach doesn’t leave for a higher-paying job.

Harbaugh joins the Chargers following a nine-year stint at the University of Michigan. This past season, he served two separate three-game suspensions related to recruiting violations and sign-stealing allegations.

On January 8, Harbaugh and his Michigan squad defeated the University of Washington, giving the school its first national championship since 1997.

Amid widespread speculation that he would leave for the NFL, Michigan reportedly offered Harbaugh a 10-year, $125 million contract that would have made him the highest-paid coach in college football. But he opted for the Chargers’s deal instead.