Jim Leonhard was already a popular defensive coordinator candidate and now another team would like to speak with him.
Per Ian Rapoport of NFL Media, the Chargers have put in a request to interview Leonard for their defensive coordinator vacancy.
Lenohard, 43, has been with the Broncos since 2024. He was the club’s defensive backs coach and pass game coordinator in his first year before being promoted to assistant head coach/defensive pass game coordinator for 2025.
The Bills have strong interest in bringing in Leonhard as their defensive coordinator under new head coach Joe Brady. The Jets also have interviewed Leonhard for their vacancy.
The Jets fired offensive coordinator Tanner Engstrand on Tuesday and their search for a replacement is moving forward on Wednesday.
Adam Schefter of ESPN reports that the Jets will interview Cowboys tight ends coach Lunda Wells for the top offensive job on Aaron Glenn’s staff.
Wells interviewed with the Commanders earlier this month and is on the list of candidates for the Steelers as well. Wells has been on the Cowboys’ coaching staff for the last six years and he coached for the Giants for eight seasons before moving to Dallas.
Prior to parting ways with Engstrand, the Jets were reportedly talking to former Colts and Panthers head coach Frank Reich about joining the staff to call offensive plays. With the coordinator job now open, the Jets will have to go through the standard hiring procedures for that role before selecting Reich or anyone else for the job.
Jon Gruden has gotten no sniffs in the current head-coaching carousel. He has, however, gotten interest about returning to the NFL as an assistant.
Via Zack Rosenblatt of TheAthletic.com, the Jets reached out to Gruden regarding the possibility of joining coach Aaron Glenn’s staff. But Gruden was not interested.
While visiting Lions training camp in July, Gruden made it clear that he wants to coach again.
“Hopefully I’m not done,” Gruden said at the time. “I’m about to make a comeback. I’m working hard to maybe get one more shot.”
Gruden apparently would prefer that shot to be as a head coach. And that’s his prerogative. It could be easier to get another head-coaching job, however, if he returns as an assistant and performs well.
Hovering over the entire situation is the fact that Gruden currently has the NFL on the run in court, with a lawsuit that has managed to withstand the league’s relentless effort to force the case into arbitration. It’s gutsy, to say the least, for the Jets to even make an inquiry to Gruden.
The Jets have interviewed a ninth candidate for their defensive coordinator vacancy.
The team announced that they have completed a virtual interview with Brian Duker. Duker spent the last two seasons as the Dolphins’ secondary coach/defensive pass game coordinator.
Duker was a member of the Lions’ staff for the previous three seasons as a defensive backs coach, safeties coach, and defensive assistant. Jets head coach Aaron Glenn was the Lions’ defensive coordinator during those years.
The Jets have also announced interviews with Mathieu Araujo, Ephraim Banda, DeMarcus Covington, Daronte Jones, Jim Leonhard, Wink Martindale, Chris Harris and Jim O’Neil for the defensive coordinator position. Jones is going to be the Commanders’ defensive coordinator, so he is out of the running for the post.
Tuesday brought word that the Jets have also dismissed offensive coordinator Tanner Engstrand, so they’ll now have multiple searches underway for key spots on Glenn’s staff.
There was reporting over the last day that the Jets were working to hire former Colts and Panthers head coach Frank Reich to join the offensive staff, though not necessarily as offensive coordinator, as that role was occupied by Tanner Engstrand.
The situation has now changed.
According to multiple reports, the Jets have parted ways with Engstrand, creating a vacancy at OC.
Via Mike Garafolo of NFL Media, Engstrand and head coach Aaron Glenn had multiple conversations about Engstrand’s role with the club moving forward. That has led to the two sides parting ways.
Engstrand, 43, coached alongside Glenn with the Lions. While Engstrand got there for the last year of Matt Patricia’s tenure as head coach in 2020, he stayed on in 2021 under Dan Campbell as an offensive quality control coach. He was promoted to tight ends coach in 2022 while also serving as passing game coordinator, then served simply as passing game coordinator from 2023-2024.
Though Reich was set to join the Jets, New York will now have to be Rooney Rule compliant if they want to hire Reich as the club’s offensive coordinator. It stands to reason that will be the case, as Reich was reportedly set to call plays for New York with Engstrand’s title remaining the same.
