The Buffalo Bills took a chance on Jim Leonhard after he didn't hear his name called during the 2005 NFL Draft. Buffalo brought aboard the undrafted, undersized former walk-on Wisconsin safety, and that's where he began his 10-year NFL playing career and ultimately spent four seasons.
More than a decade later, he's reportedly headed back, this time as a 43-year-old coach after serving as the Denver Broncos defensive passing-game coordinator the past two seasons.
The Bills are hiring Leonhard as their new defensive coordinator,permultiplereports. Leonhard, who doubled as Sean Payton's assistant head coach in 2025, will now be Joe Brady's DC in Buffalo.
Leonhard joined the Broncos' staff ahead of the 2024 season, during which he also coached a defensive-back room that featured NFL Defensive Player of the Year Patrick Surtain II, now a three-time All-Pro cornerback.
He last held a DC gig at his alma mater. Not long after wrapping up a 431-tackle, 14-interception NFL career, Leonhard was Wisconsin's defensive coordinator from 2017-22. The Badgers clocked out top 20 in scoring defense in five of those six seasons, placing top 10 four times. He finished the 2022 campaign as Wisconsin's interim head coach.
This coaching cycle, Leonhard interviewed with the Los Angeles Chargers and Baltimore Ravens as well,according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, but Leonhard will be responsible for a Bills defense that allowed the 12th-fewest points per game (21.5) this season yet ranked 28th against the run, giving up 136.2 yards per game on the ground.
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Leonhard will replace Bobby Babich, who was the Bills' DC under Sean McDermott from 2024-25. McDermottwas firedafterBuffalo's turnover-ridden, 33-30 defeat to the Broncos in the AFC divisional-round of the playoffs.
The hiring of Leonhard is an important one, given that Brady's forte is offense and the Bills have struggled to come up with key stops in the postseason in recent years.
Earlier this week,Buffalo promoted Brady from OC to head coach. Brady, 36, has been on the Bills' staff since he arrived as quarterbacks coach in 2022. He's now building a staff of his own.
That includes Leonhard, plus another former Broncos assistant, Pete Carmichael Jr. Carmichael, a longtime New Orleans Saints offensive coordinator, reunited with Payton in Denver, where he spent the past two seasons as a senior offensive assistant. He's an OC again in Buffalo.
A handful of years removed from college, Brady worked under Carmichael in 2017-18 as a Saints offensive assistant. Payton hired Brady back then.
"So proud of him,"Payton said of Brady on Tuesday. "Just spoke to him two days ago. You want to see guys that come in and work that are part of your staff.
"You want to see them have success, not the other way around."
Leonhard's one of those guys, too.
