Wisconsin defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard was about to take the same job with Matt LaFleur and the Green Bay Packers, but his love for the Badgers football program and desire to stay in Madison eventually led him to the to decline offer on Friday.
Leonhard spoke to Tom Oates and Jason Wilde of the Wisconsin State Journal about the trial and why he eventually decided to stand in Wisconsin.
“I chose YOUR,” Leonhard told Oates and Wilde. “I want to stay with UW. I want to be at this level now. Very flattered. Great opportunity. But it was not the right time to return to the NFL. “
Leonhard, 38, was a defensive defender in Wisconsin in 2001. He became a three-time All-American and three-time All-Big Ten squad before embarking on a 10-year NFL career. In 2016, he joined the Wisconsin coaching staff as a defensive backs coach and was promoted to defensive coordinator a year later.
He has a strong bond with Madison, but Leonhard said he was “ almost out the door, ” indicating how close he was to taking the Packers job, and even spoke of contract numbers with LaFleur this week. The two met twice, once virtually and once in person, per Oates and Wilde.
Leonhard described himself as a “longshot” of leaving Madison to enter the trial, but he was intrigued by the ability to coordinate an NFL defense for a Super Bowl contender and went through the full interview process with LaFleur.
Ultimately, by staying in Wisconsin – and continuing to build and mentor the Badgers football program while keeping his young family in Madison – Leonhard continued to make the move to the NFL.
‘I know the NFL. I know the good, I know the bad, I’ve been there for 10 years. I understand what the NFL is. It is exciting. Right now I just feel like UW is the right place. I’m not saying it always will be. But right now I want to be here, at this level, with this group of kids, ”said Leonhard.
Led by Leonhard over the past five years, the Wisconsin defense ranks in the top five nationally in points, total yards, passing yards, rush yards, completion rate and third down conversions, per Zach Heilprin.
Wisconsin only finished 4-3 during a pandemic-riddled 2020 season, but ended with wins over Minnesota and Wake Forest.