Wisconsin program legend becoming hot name in NFL coaching circles

Wisconsin program legend becoming hot name in NFL coaching circles

This story was updated to add new information.

Here is a sentence that should not surprise Wisconsin football fans: Badgers program legend Jim Leonhard is quietly becoming a hot name in NFL circles.

The current Denver Broncos defensive backs coach is beginning to be mentioned as a rising figure who could take a defensive coordinator job this hiring cycle.

Related: Where Paul Chryst, Jim Leonhard, Wisconsin football’s entire 2022 coaching staff is now

Leonhard currently leads a Broncos secondary that ranks No. 5 in the NFL in quarterback rating allowed, No. 2 in passing yards per attempt, No. 6 in passing yards allowed and No. 6 in interceptions through five weeks.

That group is led by all-world cornerback Patrick Surtain II, but isn’t top-down full of superstars. Other starters in the group are third-year CB Ja’Quan McMillian, second-year CB Riley Moss (via Iowa), and safeties P.J. Locke and Brandon Jones. Leonhard has the group playing like one of the best in the NFL.

This praise is not only coming from the outside. The Athletic’s Dianna Russini recently highlighted Leonhard as a key factor in Denver’s defensive success:

“Secondary coach Jim Leonhard, a former Broncos player and defensive coordinator at Wisconsin, has been getting rave reviews from his players and the staff,” Russini wrote. “So as we get closer to discussing the new batch of future NFL coordinators in the coming months, remember you read about Leonhard right here.”

Former Wisconsin quarterback and current Yahoo Sports and NFL Network analyst Nate Tice agrees with the sentiment. He called Leonhard ‘a major character’ in the NFL this season, both due to his coaching job in Denver and to the large collection of former Badger defenders dominating across the league.

Broncos beat reporter Andrew Mason also added to the conversation, calling Leonhard a ‘future NFL head coach.’

Finally, Broncos head coach Sean Payton heaped praise on Leonhard before the season even began. His sentiment has only been bolstered by strong results on the field.

 

Leonhard spent the 2023 season as an analyst on Bret Bielema’s staff at Illinois after leaving Wisconsin after Luke Fickell was hired in November 2022. He took the defensive backs coach job with the Broncos this offseason, and is already being mentioned as a possible candidate for promotion only five games into the young season.

Badgers fans are unlikely to be surprised by this news. Leonhard was one of the hotter names in the coaching industry up until the 2022 season. His defenses were among the best at the college level through his entire tenure as Badgers defensive coordinator, highlighted by a record-setting 2021 group.

The Wisconsin program legend chose an NFL path after getting passed over for the Badgers head coaching job in 2022. That decision appears to be paying dividends. His name will only be mentioned more and more on coaching hot boards as the weeks pass.

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