| Las Vegas Raiders | |
|---|---|
| Title | Defensive coordinator |
| Career information | |
| High school | Moon Area (Moon Township, Pennsylvania) |
| College | Washington & Jefferson (2005) NC State (2006–2008) |
| Position | Linebacker, No. 34 |
| Career history | |
| |
| Coaching profile at Pro Football Reference | |
Robert Leonard is an American professional football coach who is the defensive coordinator for the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League (NFL). He previously served as the defensive line coach for the Raiders from 2023 to 2025.
Leonard played college football at NC State as a linebacker and safety from 2006 to 2008 and has previously served as an assistant coach for NC State, the New York Giants, Miami Dolphins and Baltimore Ravens.
Leonard attended Moon Area High School in Moon Township, Pennsylvania, where he played as a cornerback, running back, kick returner and punter. During his time there, he earned first-team All-Conference honors as a cornerback and he also earned second-team all-state honors at cornerback.
From 2006 to 2008, Leonard played at North Carolina State University as a safety and linebacker, having initially joined the team as a walk-on before earning a scholarship following his freshman season at Washington & Jefferson College. In 2008, he led the Wolfpack with 95 tackles and earned the team's Mike Hardy Award, given annually to the player who plays beyond his capabilities. [1] [2]
In 2009, Leonard began his coaching career as a defensive assistant at Cardinal Gibbons High School in Raleigh, North Carolina. He then served as a graduate assistant at North Carolina State University from 2010 to 2012.
In 2013, Leonard was hired by the New York Giants as their defensive assistant under head coach Tom Coughlin. In 2016, he was retained under head coach Ben McAdoo.
On March 3, 2017, Leonard was promoted by the Giants as their assistant linebackers coach. [3]
On February 15, 2018, Leonard was retained by the Giants and promoted to assistant linebackers coach under head coach Pat Shurmur. [4]
On February 8, 2019, Leonard was hired by the Miami Dolphins as their linebackers coach under head coach Brian Flores. [5] In 2020, Leonard was named the assistant defensive line coach and in 2021, he was promoted to outside linebackers coach.
On February 23, 2022, Leonard was hired by the Baltimore Ravens as their outside linebackers coach under head coach John Harbaugh. [6]
In 2023, Leonard was hired by the Las Vegas Raiders as their defensive line coach under head coach Josh McDaniels. In 2024, he was retained under head coach Antonio Pierce.
In 2025, Leonard was promoted by the Raiders as their defensive line coach and run game coordinator under head coach Pete Carroll.
On February 15, 2026, Leonard was promoted by the Raiders as their defensive coordinator under head coach Klint Kubiak. [7]
Leonard and his wife, Anna, have two sons and a daughter.