In this week's episode of The Wisconsin Sportscast, former Badger Jim Leonard may have a new job, but not with the Packers. While unconfirmed as of recording, rumor has it he’s been in talks with Joe Brady with the Bills about a spot as their new defensive coordinator. Leonard is destined for a job as a defensive coordinator somewhere, and he does know Buffalo pretty well, and now that he’s officially free to talk to anyone he wants, it seems like a good fit.
Would we have liked to see Leonard in Green Bay? Sure, or at least we would have liked Matt LaFleur to wait a day to talk with Leonard before making a hiring decision.
Instead, LaFleur has hired Jonathan Gannon as his new defensive coordinator. Oates certainly isn’t down on the hire. Gannon has head coaching experience with the Arizona Cardinals, and while he doesn't have a winning track record (to say the least) it does mean he has experience working with an entire team, which is an underrated skill to have as a defensive coordinator. We do know one thing for sure: Gannon sure has shown a lot of … passion … over the years.
Meanwhile, the Brewers have officially parted ways with Freddy Peralta, who is now a member of the Mets. Some people are upset about losing the ace, but that’s how the Brewers have to play these days. If the past few years have shown anything for Milwaukee, it’s that they can stay competitive by building their farm system and losing their big name players. The Brewers netted Jett Williams and Brandon Sproat in the trade, and at least Williams shows real promise. But we won’t know how he, or the starting pitching rotation, will really work until March.
The Wisconsin Sportscast with Lucas & Oates is a Cap Times podcast produced by Nate Wegehaupt. Find it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
January 28th, 2026, 08:00 am
The Wisconsin Sportscast
Jonathan Gannon’s passion, and the Brewers' winning system
00:00
36m
Published January 28th, 2026, 08:00 am
Description
In this week's episode of The Wisconsin Sportscast, former Badger Jim Leonard may have a new job, but not with the Packers. While unconfirmed as of recording, rumor has it he’s been in talks with Joe Brady with the Bills about a spot as their new defensive coordinator. Leonard is destined for a job as a defensive coordinator somewhere, and he does know Buffalo pretty well, and now that he’s officially free to talk to anyone he wants, it seems like a good fit.
Would we have liked to see Leonard in Green Bay? Sure, or at least we would have liked Matt LaFleur to wait a day to talk with Leonard before making a hiring decision.
Instead, LaFleur has hired Jonathan Gannon as his new defensive coordinator. Oates certainly isn’t down on the hire. Gannon has head coaching experience with the Arizona Cardinals, and while he doesn't have a winning track record (to say the least) it does mean he has experience working with an entire team, which is an underrated skill to have as a defensive coordinator. We do know one thing for sure: Gannon sure has shown a lot of … passion … over the years.
Meanwhile, the Brewers have officially parted ways with Freddy Peralta, who is now a member of the Mets. Some people are upset about losing the ace, but that’s how the Brewers have to play these days. If the past few years have shown anything for Milwaukee, it’s that they can stay competitive by building their farm system and losing their big name players. The Brewers netted Jett Williams and Brandon Sproat in the trade, and at least Williams shows real promise. But we won’t know how he, or the starting pitching rotation, will really work until March.
The Wisconsin Sportscast with Lucas & Oates is a Cap Times podcast produced by Nate Wegehaupt. Find it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
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The Wisconsin Sportscast
A weekly podcast with insights and analysis on the Wisconsin Badgers, Milwaukee Brewers, Green Bay Packers and Milwaukee Bucks from two of Wisconsin’s most experienced sports journalists. Mike Lucas is a veteran sports columnist for the Cap Times and was a Badgers radio color commentator for over 25 years. Tom Oates was a sports reporter and columnist for the Wisconsin State Journal for 40 years.