Mike Vrabel Has Unique Undefeated Edge Over Jim Harbaugh Before Patriots-Chargers Wild-Card Game
When the Los Angeles Chargers and New England Patriots play in the AFC wild-card round on Sunday night, head coaches Jim Harbaugh and Mike Vrabel will do something that hasn’t been done in nearly 10 years.
As noted by ESPN Patriots reporter Mike Reiss on Sunday morning, the primetime contest will be the first playoff game between coaches who faced each other as players since Super Bowl 50.
Not only that, but Vrabel went undefeated in his playing career against Harbaugh.
“Vrabel and Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh faced off as players three times in their careers (Vrabel with the 3-0 edge),” Reiss wrote. “Sunday marks the first playoff matchup of coaches who played against each other as players since Gary Kubiak (Broncos) and Ron Rivera (Panthers) faced off in Super Bowl 50 on Feb. 7, 2016.”
The 62-year-old Harbaugh is 12 years Vrabel’s elder and his 1987 rookie campaign with the Chicago Bears was 10 seasons before the Patriots leader’s 1997 debut year with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The pair squared off once during the 1997 campaign and twice in 1998 though.
Vrabel’s Steelers knocked off Harbaugh’s Indianapolis Colts, 24-22, on Oct. 12, 1997, in Week 7, with the former quarterback going 19-for-36 with 219 passing yards, two touchdowns and one interception. Vrabel made one tackle that night.
The former linebacker again finished with just one tackle in their next meeting, but Pittsburgh edged Harbaugh (then with the Baltimore Ravens), 20-13 on Sept. 6, 1998 in Week 1. The signal-caller went only 4-for-7 with 33 passing yards before departing due to injury.
The pair’s final head-to-head as players came on Oct. 18, 1998, in Week 7, with the Steelers defeating the Ravens 16-6.
Serving as a backup, Harbaugh was 0-for-6 with two interceptions, while Vrabel had two tackles and one sack.
Harbaugh’s and Vrabel’s playing careers mean little to nothing when it comes to Sunday night, but if Patriots fans want another good omen for the matchup, they can look at what happened with the coaches in the past.