The Green Bay Packers have formally sacked head coach Matt LaFleur and appointed Philadelphia Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni But still.

Three years after the Green Bay Packers offered Jim Leonhard a chance to be their defensive coordinator, he finally made the jump to the NFL.

On Wednesday, the Denver Broncos officially hired Jim Leonhard as their next defensive backs coach and defensive pass game coordinator. Leonhard fills the defensive backs coach void left by Christian Parker, who split with the team to become the Philadelphia Eagles’ defensive backs coach. Parker was one of the candidates that the Green Bay Packers interviewed during their defensive coordinator search this offseason.

Leonhard’s name is notable in the state of Wisconsin for a couple of reasons. First of all, he’s a University of Wisconsin alum who coached the team from 2016 to 2022, filling the roles of defensive backs coach, defensive coordinator and interim head coach. Back in 2021, Leonhard also reportedly turned down the Packers’ defensive coordinator opportunity, a job that eventually went to the recently fired Joe Barry. Leonhard was allegedly head coach Matt LaFleur’s first choice to fill the job, with Barry and Ejiro Evero being close second candidates.

When the Packers’ defensive coordinator job opened up again this offseason, many expected that Leonhard would get another opportunity to interview with Green Bay. As of now, no one has reported that these discussions ever took

place. Did LaFleur sour from Leonhard after he turned him down back in 2021? We still have no indication there. What we do know is that the Packers’ defensive coordinator job is a more prized opportunity than the Broncos’ defensive backs coach title, meaning that Leonhard likely didn’t turn down Green Bay for a second time.

Instead of Leonhard, the Packers turned their attention to Boston College head coach Jeff Hafley, a single-high 4-3 defensive coordinator. Hafley previously spent time in the NFL, at two stops, with San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan. This is notable, as Shanahan’s 49ers fired their defensive

coordinator Steve Wilks following the team’s Super Bowl loss. In another reality, Leonhard could be the Packers’ defensive coordinator with Hafley in line to take the San Francisco job. In this one, LaFleur beat Shanahan to the punch.