Jim Leonhard Gives Bills' Fans What They've Yearned for in Week 3 Victory

There's been a lot of buzz around Jim Leonhard as the new defensive coordinator of the Buffalo Bills. But Sunday felt like the first time Bills fans could say his defense was responsible for Buffalo coming out on top in a game this season.

While the Bills' offense sputtered with five turnovers in Week 3, the Buffalo defense shined in the comeback win over the Los Angeles Chargers. The team allowed a season-low 16 points, limited the Chargers to 40 percent on third down, and forced Justin Herbert's struggles in 2026 to continue.

The Bills have to be encouraged by just how strong the defense looked in dropping LA to 0-3.

The Bills defense held the opposition to 16 points when their offense turned it over 5 times. 😱

Excited to see Jim Leonhard get his much overdue love from sports* this week.
— Kay Adams (@heykayadams) September 27, 2026

Red zone lockdown

One of the biggest stats of the day was that Buffalo held the Chargers to one for four in terms of scoring touchdowns on their red zone attempts. That was an encouraging sign after the Lions and Texans combined to go seven for eight in the red zone against the Bills in the first two outings.

That improvement is just one of the clear steps forward Buffalo's defense has taken in each of the team's first three games. The unit has also allowed fewer points and yards in each of those games, showing that it is trending upward as a group.

The Bills appear to be a team getting more comfortable under their new leader. And no one looks more comfortable than the D's new rising star.

Rousseau Renaissance

Greg Rousseau and Justin Herbert — Sep 27, 2026; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert (10) is sacked by Buffalo Bills linebacker Greg Rousseau (15) during the second quarter at Former Highmark Stadium. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The continued growth of the Buffalo defense is also tied to the emergence of Greg Rousseau. The sixth-year pro has three seasons in his career with more than six sacks. Now, through three games under Leonhard, the former Miami Hurricane has a league-best six sacks, adding two more on Sunday.

Rousseau is leading the way for a revamped pass-rushing unit. With Bradley Chubb, Deone Walker, and Michael Hoecht in the fold, the Bills have totaled nine sacks in three games. That is a much-needed sight after the team finished 19th and 20th overall, respectively, in the NFL in sacks in 2024 and 2025.

Buffalo's D will need to show it can stack up against some of the NFL's best offenses. But after Sunday's showing, Bills fans must have much more faith in Leonhard and the unit he's building.

Greg Rousseau ⬇️

🏈 Has the most sacks in team history through 3 games (6.0)
🏈 Leads the NFL in sacks
🏈 Became the third player ever to have three straight 2+ sack games to open a season (1984 Mark Gastineau & 1998 Kevin Greene) pic.twitter.com/cj59NyEb4m
— Buffalo Bills PR (@BuffaloBillsPR) September 27, 2026

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