Report: Broncos and Jim Harbaugh very interested

After the Denver Broncos made the decision to part ways with head coach Nathaniel Hackett after less than a full first season on the job, speculation immediately began to build as to who they would tap for their now-vacated position. And while former Super Bowl winning head coach Sean Payton has been on their radar, rumors of University of Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh making a return to the NFL and joining forces with the Broncos have been intensifying. 

Take a look at the comments made recently by NFL Insider Ian Rapoport, who is as dialed in as anyone could possibly be in the world of football. 

“Sean Payton obviously a big name on the Denver Broncos radar, so is Jim Harbaugh,” Rapoport said on NFL Network. “Of course, Harbaugh met with the Broncos virtually for about two hours earlier this past week. Michigan is still trying to lock him up. There is still at least a chance he returns to Michigan. If they have not lock him up, I would expect Harbaugh and the Broncos at some point in the future to get together. … There is some strong mutual interest here.”

This certainly isn't the first time that the Wolverines head coach, who has led his team to back to back playoff appearances and victories over their arch rival Ohio State Buckeyes, has flirted with a return to the NFL. 

"The sides spoke, I'm told, for over two hours," Tom Pelissero reported earlier this week on NFL Network. "Harbaugh has been weighing his NFL options in recent weeks and has emerged as a top candidate in Denver, so had Sean Payton, the former Saints coach who remains under contract with New Orleans. The Saints have granted the Broncos permission to speak with Payton."

It appears as though Harbaugh still has the itch to try and win the Super Bowl, after he lost to his brother John Harbaugh and the Baltimore Ravens nearly a decade ago while he was head coach of the San Francisco 49ers.