Raiders head coach Klint Kubiak has found his defensive coordinator.
Las Vegas is promoting defensive line coach and run game coordinator Rob Leonard to defensive coordinator, NFL Network Insiders Ian Rapoport, Tom Pelissero and Mike Garafolo reported on Saturday, per sources. The team officially announced Leonard's promotion on Sunday.
Rapoport added that Joe Woods is also expected to remain with the club as its defensive pass game coordinator.
Leonard, 38, has spent three seasons in Las Vegas. Before adding the role of run game coordinator, he served solely as the defensive line coach in 2023-24, which meant working closely with Raiders star pass rusher Maxx Crosby.
It's notable that Crosby, whose future remains uncertain under a new regime, has a familiar voice in Leonard being promoted to defensive coordinator. The Raiders pass rusher said recently that he didn't want to "throw gasoline on the fire" with trade rumors swirling.
Leonard is set to take on his first defensive coordinator job in the NFL. He got his first NFL coaching gig in 2013 with the New York Giants as a defensive assistant coach. After the 2018 season, Leonard went down to Miami and had multiple roles with the Dolphins from 2019 to 2021. He also spent one season with John Harbaugh in Baltimore as an outside linebackers coach in 2022.
Now, Leonard gets an opportunity to turn around a defense that struggled to contain opposing offenses. Las Vegas ranked 25th in points per game (25.4) and 24th in sacks last season. It will certainly be a challenge for Leonard, but free agency and April's draft should provide an opportunity to strengthen his defensive unit -- even if all indications are the Raiders will go offense with the No. 1 overall pick.
Many expect Las Vegas to select Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza, but in Kubiak's noted in his opening news conference that there's still film to review before a final decision is made.
Nonetheless, Kubiak and the Raiders will begin that process over the next couple of weeks. For now, though, Las Vegas has found its defensive coordinator in Leonard.
