Less than a week after taking over as the head coach of the Buffalo Bills, Joe Brady already has his top coaching staff in place. The Bills moved quickly this week, hiring Pete Carmichael as offensive coordinator, Jim Leonhard as defensive coordinator, and Jeff Rodgers as special teams coordinator. While the team is yet to announce any position coach hires, Brady just made his feelings clear on the three coordinators he has assembled so far in Buffalo. 

“Joe Brady says on the #Sabres broadcast that all three of the coordinators the #Bills hired this week are fantastic teachers and will be great for both the team and the community. Brandon Beane gave a special shout-out to Jim Leonhard for having worn the colors and already knowing what it’s like to be a Bill,” reporter Bradley Gelber shared via X on January 31.

Before his promotion, Joe Brady served as the Bills’ OC and earned the head coaching job after the team fired former HC Sean McDermott. Then, from day one as the new HC, Brady talked about building a staff that wouldn’t simply mirror his own tendencies or ideas.

“If we have a bunch of Joe Bradys in the room, we’re not going to grow, and we’re not going to evolve,” Joe Brady had said in his introductory press conference.

Brady further emphasized merit, teaching ability, and fit over familiarity in choosing his coaching staff. He wants different perspectives, but ones that align with the Bills’ goals. 

That philosophy has guided each of the Bills’ hires to this point.

At 54, Super Bowl LXV champion Pete Carmichael brings deep offensive experience and a long résumé. He has worked as a senior offensive assistant with the Denver Broncos under head coach Sean Payton since 2024. Before that, Carmichael served as the New Orleans Saints’ OC from 2009 to 2023, after first joining the staff in 2006 as quarterbacks coach. His coaching tenure with the team also overlaps with Joe Brady’s own time in New Orleans as an offensive assistant in 2017 and 2018.

With Drew Brees at quarterback from 2009 through 2020 and Carmichael calling plays, the Saints finished in the top 11 in scoring every single season. The peak of Carmichael’s coaching career came in 2009, when the Saints led the league in scoring (31.9 points per game) and passing yards (403.8 per game) and secured a Super Bowl win. 

Now, Carmichael’s 26 years of NFL coaching experience and his strong ties to Payton give Joe Brady a proven offensive partner as he looks to push Buffalo’s attack forward.

Jeff Rodgers, meanwhile, brings steadiness and credibility to Buffalo’s special teams. 

The 48-year-old spent the past eight seasons as the Arizona Cardinals’ special teams coordinator and added the assistant head coach title in 2020. In 2021, he even served as co-interim head coach during Arizona’s 37-14 win over the Cleveland Browns. Rodgers’ résumé includes special teams stops with five different NFL franchises, including the Denver Broncos from 2011 to 2014. 

That connection now reunites Rodgers with veteran kicker Matt Prater in Buffalo. Under Rodgers’ coaching in Denver, Prater set the NFL record for the longest field goal, a 64-yarder that stood from 2013 to 2021. 

Meanwhile, Jim Leonhard, who earned a special shout-out from Joe Brady for beginning his NFL career as an undrafted free agent with the Bills in 2005, is now returning to familiar territory, as ESPN sources reported earlier.

After a 10-year NFL playing career and a successful run in college coaching, Leonhard spent the last two seasons as the Denver Broncos’ defensive pass game coordinator and assistant HC. But as this will be Leonhard’s first DC job in the league, it naturally raises the question of whether hiring him was a risky decision for the Bills.

Was hiring Jim Leonhard the best decision for Joe Brady and the Bills?

Joe Brady knew exactly what he wanted in his DC in Buffalo. As a first-year head coach, Brady needed a true partner, someone with an aggressive mindset who could inject energy and disruption into a Bills’ defense that many felt had grown too conservative. In Jim Leonhard, the Bills believe they’ve found that game-wrecking mentality.

During Leonhard’s tenure (2017 to 2022) at the University of Wisconsin, as DC and one season as interim HC, Wisconsin ranked 1st among all Power-5 college football teams in first downs allowed per game (15.4). Under Leonhard, the Badgers were also ranked 1st in yards allowed per game (288). The turnover production of the Badgers’ defense stood out even more with Leonhard, as they finished top five in interceptions (87) and takeaways (132).

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Jim Leonhard carried that impact into the NFL while working with the Broncos over the past two seasons. In the past season, the Broncos’ defense set the franchise record with 68 sacks and ranked 2nd overall with 278.2 yards per game. Meanwhile, the Bills’ defense ranked seventh overall in the past season, allowing 293.1 yards per game. 

Now, as Jim Leonhard takes over as the defensive play-caller for the first time in Buffalo, he’s expected to bring an aggressive and chaotic style that contrasts with the team’s recent approach. So, at face value, bringing in Leonhard appears to be a strong hire for Joe Brady as he continues to fill out the coaching staff in Buffalo.