Bills To Hire Jim Leonhard As DC
After starting his NFL playing career in Buffalo in 2005, Jim Leonhard is headed back to western New York. The Bills are expected to hire the 43-year-old as their defensive coordinator, per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.
Leonhard spent the last two seasons in Denver as their defensive pass game coordinator. He additionally held the title of defensive backs coach in 2024 and assistant head coach in 2025. In that time, the Broncos defense has been one of the best in the NFL, ranking second in yards per attempt last year and leading the league this past season. He is the team’s second assistant to join Joe Brady‘s new staff in Buffalo; Broncos senior offensive assistant Pete Carmichael accepted a job as the Bills’ new offensive coordinator earlier this week.
Leonard has now completed a remarkable rise from walk-on safety at the University of Wisconsin to NFL defensive coordinator. Despite three straight All-Big Ten nods to end his college career – and a strong pedigree as a returner – Leonhard went undrafted in 2005. He signed with the Bills and made the 53-man roster, kicking off a decade-long career that featured stints with five other teams.
Among them were the Broncos, who gave Leonhard his first NFL coaching job, and the Ravens, who requested to interview him for their defensive coordinator vacancy. He also interviewed with the Cowboys, Chargers, and Jets, but they all went with other candidates. Instead, he will join Brady in Buffalo as the play-caller for a Bills defense that was one of the league’s best from 2021 to 2023 but faltered in the last two years.
The Bills’ coaching jobs were viewed as some of the most desirable in the league due to the franchise’s recent success and the presence of star quarterback Josh Allen. But a closer look at the roster reveals significant holes. The defensive line features only two proven impact players in Greg Rousseau and Ed Oliver, veteran linebackers Matt Milano and Joey Bosa are set to hit free agency, and the secondary either needs more veteran depth or some development from their younger players.
Leonhard can certainly address that final issue right away. A number of Broncos defensive backs have taken significant steps forward under Leonhard, including cornerbacks Riley Moss and Ja’Quan McMillian. Safety Talanoa Hufanga earned a second-team All-Pro nod in 2025, his first year in Denver, and Patrick Surtain won Defensive Player of the Year in 2024.
Leonhard starting his coaching career at his alma mater in 2016. After a year as defensive backs coach, he was promoted to defensive coordinator and eventually served as the interim head coach in 2022. He then spent a year at Illinois as an analyst before joining Sean Payton‘s staff in Denver.
Falcons Hire Alex Van Pelt As QBs Coach
Kevin Stefanski is bringing one of his former offensive coordinators to Atlanta. Alex Van Pelt, who worked under Stefanski in Cleveland from 2020 to 2023, will be joining the Falcons as their quarterbacks coach, per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero. The move is now official, per a team announcement.
Van Pelt, 55, served as a senior offensive assistant for the Rams in 2025. He was the Browns’ offensive coordinator from 2020 to 2023 with the added title of quarterbacks coach in his final year. Cleveland’s offense generally ranked in the middle of the league during his tenure, though that was a significant improvement over the previous decade. Before that, he occupied a variety of roles with the Bills, Packers, Buccaneers, and Bengals, typically as the quarterbacks coach, though he was the Bills’ OC in 2009 and the Packers’ running backs coach in 2012 and 2013. For the next four seasons, Van Pelt worked closely with Aaron Rodgers, who earned three Pro Bowls and was named MVP in 2014.
After leaving Cleveland, Van Pelt served as the Patriots’ offensive coordinator in 2024 before he was hired by the Rams in 2025. New England finished as a bottom-three offense under Van Pelt, who struggled to get Drake Maye going in his rookie season. The Rams’ offense in 2025 was far more successful, but Van Pelt’s impact is harder to quantify given the presence of Sean McVay and Nate Scheelhaase in Los Angeles.
In Atlanta, Van Pelt will be tasked with continuing the development of Michael Penix Jr. He may also be asked to get a new quarterback up to speed quickly, as Penix’s availability for the start of the 2026 season is no guarantee.
Bills, Packers Request QBs Coach Interview with Cardinals’ Connor Senger
The Bills and Packers both requested to interview Cardinals passing game coordinator Connor Senger for their quarterbacks coach vacancies, per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero.
Senger, 30, has worked closely with Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray over the past four seasons. Senger arrived in Arizona in 2022 as a coaching fellow and moved up in each of the last three offseasons. He became a quality control coach in 2022, the assistant quarterbacks coach in 2024, and the pass game coordinator in 2025.
The Cardinals’ air attack has struggled for the most of Senger’s time in Arizona, though Murray has only played in 41 games in that span.
Before joining the Cardinals, Senger spent time with a number of college teams. In 2017, began his coaching career at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, a Division III program for whom he started at quarterback for the previous two seasons. He worked for two more D-III schools – Carroll and Wisconsin-Whitewater – before a two-year stint at North Dakota State, which preceded his entrance to the NFL.
The jobs in both Buffalo and Green Bay offer the appeal of working with clear face-of-the-franchise quarterbacks in Josh Allen and Jordan Love. The latter has not reached the same heights as the former, but both are under contract through at least 2028. Success as one of the two’s coach could lead to an offensive coordinator by then, if not sooner. To that point, Senger called plays at the East-West Shrine Bowl this week. While that is certainly not the same to a full-time coordinator gig, it shows that Senger is viewed by some as a potential future OC.
Ravens To Hire Declan Doyle As OC
The Ravens are expected to hire Bears offensive coordinator Declan Doyle for the same position on Jesse Minter‘s new staff in Baltimore, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Doyle, 29, has just seven years of NFL coaching experience and only one season as a coordinator. He previously served as an offensive assistant with the Saints (2019-2022) and a tight ends coach with the Broncos (2023-2024) before joining Ben Johnson in Chicago. He helped Johnson quickly install his offense and played a crucial role in Caleb Williams‘ second-year breakout, both of which contributed to the Bears winning their first playoff game since 2010.
Doyle’s success in those roles – as well as his time under Johnson and Sean Payton – attracted the attention of the Eagles and the Ravens in recent weeks as they look for new offensive coordinators. Though the Bears could block those interviews, they allowed Doyle to speak with other teams. He withdrew from the Eagles’ search, but traveled to Baltimore on Friday to interview with the Ravens. That meeting clearly went well, as the two sides quickly reached an agreement for Doyle to join Minter’s staff.
In Baltimore, Doyle will get to work rebuilding the Ravens offense around Lamar Jackson after a disappointing 2025 season. The unit regressed significantly from their elite numbers in 2023 and 2024 and finished 11th in points and 16th in yards. A number of injuries to Jackson played a role, though they were also symptomatic of bigger issues. The offensive line could not consistently keep Jackson clean in the pocket or open up holes at the line of scrimmage, and the Ravens went from being one of the league’s best red-zone offenses to one of its worst.
The Bears were confident that Doyle would remain in Chicago after he withdrew his name from the Eagles’ search, per Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune. However, the opportunity to work under Minter and call plays Jackson on a Ravens team that is expected to return to championship contention in 2026 was too much to turn down. Johnson will now have to find a new offensive coordinator heading into his second season as a head coach, and he will not be able to offer play-calling duties to entice candidates with interest from other teams.
The Ravens, meanwhile, will now work with Doyle to build out the rest of his offensive staff. They have already made key hires to coach their offensive line, but former coaches John Harbaugh and Todd Monken have been poaching assistants from their previous staff in Baltimore. With Doyle hired, the Ravens will be able to make decisions on the rest of their incumbent coaches, including important figures like quarterbacks coach Tee Martin.
Here is an overview of Baltimore’s now-completed offensive coordinator search:
- Joe Brady, offensive coordinator (Bills): Mentioned as candidate
- Declan Doyle, offensive coordinator (Bears): Hire expected
- Kliff Kingsbury, former offensive coordinator (Commanders): Interviewed 1/12
- Mike McDaniel, former head coach (Dolphins): Mentioned as candidate
- Scottie Montgomery, wide receivers coach (Lions): To interview
- Davis Webb, quarterbacks coach (Broncos): Interview requested
Patriots DC Terrell Williams Is Cancer-Free, Will Travel To Super Bowl
The Patriots are headed to the Super Bowl, and for the first time this season, defensive coordinator Terrell Williams will be traveling with the team for the game. 
Williams, 51, was diagnosed with prostate cancer shortly after the start of the regular season. A health scare had chased him from spring ball, and though he reunited with his team shortly before the start of the regular season, Williams was forced to depart after New England’s Week 1 loss the Raiders and has been off the sideline ever since. He is now cancer-free, per Andrew Callahan of the Boston Herald. Head coach Mike Vrabel informed his team a few weeks ago, and Williams has since been given the go-ahead to join the team in their upcoming trip to California.
Williams remained involved with the team during treatment by attending meetings and keeping in touch with players. Play-calling duties were handed to inside linebackers coach Zak Kuhr, who excelled in the role. New England’s defense ranked fourth in points allowed and eighth in total defense and dominated opposing offenses throughout their first three playoff games. Vinny DePalma, a defensive assistant, stepped into Kuhr’s role to help manage the Patriots linebacking corps, in the meantime.
It was a long road back for Williams. After his initial diagnosis indicated an aggressive form of prostate cancer, he and Vrabel agreed he should take time away from the team to focus on his treatment. It started with a month-long medication schedule that led into chemotherapy treatments — five rounds with three weeks separating each round. After beating his cancer, Williams returned to New England to rejoin the team, with whom he’ll now fight for the ultimate prize of the sport.
Ely Allen contributed to this post.
Bills To Hire Cardinals’ STC Jeff Rodgers
The Bills are expected to hire Cardinals special teams coordinator Jeff Rodgers for the same job on Joe Brady’s new staff in Buffalo, per The Athletic’s Dianna Russini.
Rodgers, 48, has spent the last eight seasons in Arizona with the added title of assistant head coach for the last seven. He previously served as the special teams coordinator for the Panthers (2010), Broncos (2011-2014), and Bears, (2015-2017). Before that, he worked as a special teams assistant for the 49ers (2003-2007) before his first coordinator gig with at Kansas State.
Rodgers will be replacing Chris Tabor, who was hired by the Bills last offseason after previously working for the Panthers. He overlapped with new head coach Joe Brady in Carolina, but the two will not continue working together in Buffalo. Tabor accepted an offer to be the Dolphins’ new special teams coordinator before Brady was officially name the Bills’ head coach.
Buffalo’s special teams unit received an 88.0 overall grade from Pro Football Focus (subscription required) in 2025. Running back Ray Davis received a first-team All-Pro nod as a returner after averaging 30.4 yards on his kick returns, the most in the league. Tabor helped keep the kicking and punting units afloat amid injuries to Matt Prater and Cameron Johnston.
Broncos Interview Brian Johnson For OC Job
The Broncos have interviewed Commanders assistant coach Brian Johnson for their offensive coordinator vacancy, according to NFL insider Jordan Schultz.
Johnson, 38, currently holds the position of assistant head coach and offensive passing game coordinator in Washington. He was previously the Eagles’ quarterbacks coach (2021-2022), working closely with Jalen Hurts as he became a Pro Bowler. He then served as the Eagles’ offensive coordinator in 2023 and led his unit to the seventh-most yards and the eighth-most points in the league.
Though that was a strong performance, it still represented regression from Philadelphia’s third-ranked offense in 2022 under Shane Steichen, who was hired away by the Colts. The Eagles also only scored nine points in their wild card loss to the Buccaneers in the 2023 postseason. Nick Sirianni relieved Johnson of his duties and replaced him with Kellen Moore, whose offense finished with the exact same ranks as Johnson’s. Moore did find far more success in the playoffs in 2024, including 40- and 55-point showings in the NFC Championship and Super Bowl.
Johnson’s arrival in Washington certainly seemed to help Jayden Daniels get settled in the NFL. Though the Commanders leaned on their run game for much of the season, Daniels emerged as a pro-ready passer right away. He won Offensive Rookie of the Year and mounted four fourth-quarter comebacks and four game-winning drives, largely through the air.
Johnson’s success with Hurts and Daniels are likely a primary factor in the Broncos’ interest. Bo Nix did not show much progress in 2025 with similar statistics to his rookie campaign, so Denver may be interest in Johnson’s ability to kickstart Nix’s development.
Falcons To Hire Ian Cunningham As GM
The Falcons are hiring Bears executive Ian Cunningham to be their next general manager, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter. The team has since confirmed the news with an official announcement.
Cunningham, 40, has been Chicago’s assistant general manager for the last four years. He was a candidate for the newly created president of football operations job that went to Matt Ryan and quickly emerged as a favorite for the general manager job. He will replace Terry Fontenot, who was fired after five seasons on the job. Atlanta finished under .500 in every year of Fontenot’s tenure, which featured zero playoff berths. Falcons owner Arthur Blank fired Fontenot and head coach Raheem Morris after the 2025 season with the hopes of quickly reshaping the franchise.
Hiring Cunningham is the third step in doing just that. Bringing Ryan aboard was the first, and installing Kevin Stefanski as Morris’ successor was the second. Now, the trio will head into the offseason looking to build around the Falcons’ core of exciting young players on both sides of the ball.
This marks a significant step for Cunningham, who was a finalist for the Commanders’ GM job in 2024 and the Cardinals’ position in 2023. While Adam Peters won out for the Washington gig, Cunningham is believed to have turned down an Arizona GM offer. Cunningham also emerged as a strong Jaguars GM candidate last year. Despite Ryan’s presence, the veteran exec accepted this Atlanta position and will work in helping the team turn things around.
Cunningham began his football career as an offensive lineman at the University of Virginia. He went undrafted in 2008 and signed with the Chiefs but did not make the 53-man roster. He immediately moved into a front office career as a personnel assistant with the Ravens. He contributed to Baltimore’s 2012 Super Bowl win and became an area scout the following year. His success in that role eventually attracted the attention of Howie Roseman and the Eagles, who hired him to be their director of college scouting in 2017.
Cunningham spent five years in Philadelphia with promotions to assistant director of player personnel in 2019 and director of player personnel in 2021. The Eagles consistently had strong rosters during his tenure, with three playoff berths and the franchise’s first Super Bowl victory in 2017. Though he left for Chicago in 2022, Cunningham’s fingerprints were also all over the teams that made the Super Bowl that season and won it in 2024.
In Chicago, Cunningham joined new general manager Ryan Poles and the two worked to rebuild a team that had not won a playoff game in more than a decade. After three years and a 15-36 record, their efforts finally paid off. After drafting quarterback Caleb Williams and hiring head coach Ben Johnson in back-to-back offseasons, the Bears went 11-6, won the NFC North, and beat the Packers in the wild-card round, their best finish since 2018. Their season ended the next week with an overtime loss to the Rams, but it was clear that Cunningham helped build another championship contender.
He will now attempt to do the same in Atlanta, this time as the general manager. The Falcons already have a number of pieces in place. On offense are quarterback Michael Penix Jr., running back Bijan Robinson, wide receiver Drake London, left tackle Jake Matthews, and right guard Chris Lindstrom, and the defense features edge rushers Jalon Walker and James Pearce, cornerback AJ Terrell, and safety Xavier Watts.
From there, Cunningham will work with Ryan and Stefanski to build around that young core, though he will not be able to get too aggressive right away. The Falcons are projected to have just $17.4MM in cap space entering the 2026 offseason, per OverTheCap, though Cunningham can obviously find ways to make more room. Atlanta will also be without its first-round pick in April’s draft having used it last year to trade up for Pearce.
Typically, when a team hires another team’s minority executive to be their general manager, the original team receives two third-round compensatory selections. But since Ryan is considered the Falcons’ primary football executive, the Bears will not be receiving any draft picks as a result of Cunningham’s hire, per Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune. That also means Chicago could have blocked the move, but the NFC North club opted not to. Instead, the Bears will begin their own search to replace Cunningham as Poles’ top lieutenant.
Giants To Interview Chargers QBs Coach Shane Day For OC Job
The Giants have added Chargers quarterback coach Shane Day to their list of candidates for their offensive coordinator vacancy. He will interview for the job on Saturday, according to NFL insider Jordan Schultz.
Day, 51, joined the Chargers in 2024 on Jim Harbaugh‘s new coaching staff. He would be staying in the family if he gets the job in New York under Jim’s brother, John Harbaugh. But unlike most of the recent hires to the Giants’ coaching staff, Day has no direct connection to John Harbaugh himself.
Instead, Day has held a variety of roles with six different NFL teams in the last two decades, as well as brief college stints at Michigan and Connecticut. He was the quarterbacks coach for the Bears (2010-2011), 49ers (2019-2020), and the Chargers (2021-2022, 2024-present). Across his career, he has worked with Jay Cutler, Jimmy Garoppolo, Justin Herbert, and C.J. Stroud, among others.
Day was particularly instrumental in developing Herbert. He arrived in Los Angeles in Herbert’s second year in the NFL, in which he became one of three players to eclipse 5,000 passing yards since 2020. Herbert put up another strong year in 2022, saw a dip in 2023, and rebounded in 2024 and 2025 working with Day once more.
The success of Day’s partnership with Herbert is likely one of the main reasons for the Giants’ interest in hiring Day. They will be hoping that 2025 first-round pick Jaxson Dart can take a leap in his first full season as a starter, and Day could be the coach to pull that out of him.
However, Day has never called plays for a college or pro team. He would have those responsibilities under Harbaugh in New York, so hiring him could be a bit of a gamble. It might be worth the risk, though, if Day can take Dart to the next level.
NFL Reserve/Futures Contracts: 1/29/26
Three teams signed players to reserve/futures contracts on Thursday. Here are the latest updates:
Denver Broncos
- OT Marques Cox, C Michael Deiter, G Nash Jones, DT Kristian Williams
Detroit Lions
- TE Thomas Gordon
Pittsburgh Steelers
- WR A.T. Perry