Bills' Jim Leonhard describes significant reason why he chose Buffalo

Like many who spend ample time in Western New York, Jim Leonhard is a big fan of Buffalo.

On Thursday, the Buffalo Bills’ new defensive coordinator first met the media since being hired to serve under head coach Joe Brady, and he spent a few moments reflecting on his previous memories made in “The City of Good Neighbors” while also revealing a reason why he chose the region as the next stop in his coaching career.

Queen City

“I think Buffalo is a unique place,” he said during his introductory press conference. “It’s a unique place in the NFL, and the thing that stuck with me and stood out early, and then stuck with me throughout my career, the locker room felt a little bit different here as far as how tight it was.”

Leonhard mentioned that the close-knit feel is part of what swayed him to choose the Bills while being pursued by a list of other teams during this offseason's hiring cycle.

“Those things really stuck with me when it was coming down to the decision on where to go,” he said.

The Bills’ defensive coordinator previously spent four years in Buffalo during his decade-long playing career. He was with the Bills from 2005 to 2007 after the team brought him in as an undrafted free agent, and he later returned to the organization for the 2013 campaign.

MORE: Plan for Christian Benford unveiled by Buffalo Bills' new defensive coordinator

We’re live with Jim Leonhard for his introductory press conference as Bills Defensive Coordinator! https://t.co/949DbDmqCZ
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) February 5, 2026

Looking back

His greatest memory during his Bills tenure didn’t occur on the field, but rather after one of the more ugly games of his two stints in Buffalo.

“We played in Cleveland, it was a snow game, one of those you get snowed in. And the whole city shut down,” he remembered. “So you kind of just had the hotel, the players, end of the season, end of a rough season, we were out of the playoffs. But one of those memories that will always stick with you just because it kind of encapsulated what it was. It sucked, it was a (bad) game, we got beat, you felt like crap, it was snowy, you couldn’t get home, but you make the most of it with that team.”

He added, “It’s this locker room, it’s this building, it’s the families of the players and coaches and you kind of what you felt like that’s what you had in that situation.”

Bills Mafia

Leonhard also expressed his appreciation for the Bills’ fan base, which he views as second to none.

“They just want to win,” he said. “They want to support this team. They want to just be part of a Super Bowl champion team."

The Bills and their fans need Leonhard to step in and deliver transcendent change for a defense in dire need of a refresh entering the 2026 season. But when it comes to winning over the fan base, Buffalo has taken the first steps in doing so, as new head coach Joe Brady delivered anencouraging first press conference and followed up by bringing in a defensive coordinator who the entire fan base seemed to want.

Next up will be delivering meaningful results, which the Bills hope Brady and Leonhard begin next spring when the team takes the field for offseason workouts.

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