Jim Harbaugh buyout would be only $1.5 million

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When Panthers owner David Tepper lured Matt Rhule from Baylor two years ago, Tepper had to cut a check to Baylor in the amount of $6 million. If the Vikings hire Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh, the price to be paid will be considerably lower.

Via Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press, Harbaugh’s buyout is only $1.5 million.

The Vikings interviewed Harbaugh on Saturday. Varying accounts of the formality and intensity of the session have emerged. Were the Vikings simply kicking tires at the behest of new G.M. Kwesi Adofo-Mensah? Or is Minnesota seriously considering the pursuit of the coach who immediately turned the 49ers around in 2011?

Whatever the case may be, it won’t require a major check made payable to the University of Michigan to get Harbaugh. The fact that the buyout is so small shows that Harbaugh is indeed interested in returning to the NFL and attending to unfinished business.