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Evan & Tiki

Hour 3: Ian O’Connor: Giants “Out in Front” for Harbaugh and Why No Plan B

Evan & Tiki

Audacy

Sports

4.2990 Ratings

🗓️ 14 January 2026

⏱️ 42 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

The Athletic’s Ian O’Connor joins Evan and Tiki with the latest on the John Harbaugh meeting and why the Giants appear to be leading the race. Ian explains what today’s sit-down really means, why the face-to-face time with Joe Schoen matters most, and what Harbaugh is looking for when it comes to roster power and the quarterback plan. Then the conversation widens to the other suitors, including why Atlanta and Tennessee might come to Harbaugh instead of the other way around, plus the one “looming” team that could still complicate things. Ian also gives his current odds on Harbaugh landing with the Giants, and why money will not be the issue. Finally, it turns to Aaron Rodgers and what comes next, including the possibility of Minnesota, a fascinating GM “word salad,” and what it all signals about the Vikings’ quarterback direction. Oh, and yes, the show also finds time for an all-time Cinco de Lunch moment: the “salmonella vs semolina” bread confusion goes fully off the rails.

Transcript

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0:00.0

veteran New York reporter with the athletic. He's also sold a million best-selling books,

0:05.2

including that Out of the Darkness book with Aaron Rogers, which was very entertaining.

0:09.6

Ian O'Connor, Ian, good to talk to you, man. Tiki and Evan, how are you?

0:13.0

How are you guys doing? Great to be on. We're good, Ian. Fantastic. So, what's going to happen today?

0:18.8

What's this meeting going to be like?

0:21.0

And do you think the Giants sealed the deal today on John Harbaugh as a new head coach?

0:26.2

Well, Evan, I'll start with what will happen if the Giants don't make a deal,

0:30.1

which is not what Giants fans want to hear.

0:32.7

I think there's a chance that he will actually host Atlanta and Tennessee in the Baltimore area as opposed to going to those facilities.

0:41.6

I think that was still a little bit up in the air, but that's a possibility.

0:45.3

And so a visit to New Jersey to sit down with Steve Tisch and John Marron, Chris Marr and everyone else, Joe Shane, of course, is a really good sign because he's

0:55.1

definitely making that visit. I'm not sure he's going to those other two facilities. So I think the

1:01.0

Giants are out in front without question. I've fought that from day one. I know he's thought

1:06.6

about being the head coach of the New York Giants. I know that he's told people the Giants had a very legitimate shot to win this

1:13.8

derby.

1:14.8

I know he's looked at tape of Jackson Dartton come away, excited about what he's seen.

1:19.9

Obviously, he knows at 4 and 13, the Giants have some work to do.

1:22.5

So if I'm a Giants fan, I'd be feeling pretty good right about it.

1:26.0

Now, we listened to Steve Bashati yesterday talk about John Hallbaugh's departure, and he said he's

1:32.3

not going anywhere, but it doesn't have a quarterback.

1:34.1

He's too old of a coach.

1:36.3

And so we know what we all feel about Jackson Dart.

...

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