Defensive Passing-Game Coordinator: Bobby Babich
Other than the 2016 season with Florida International, Bobby Babich has been an NFL assistant since 2012. That includes the 2014 and 2015 seasons in Cleveland under former coach Mike Pettine.
In 2017, he joined the staff assembled in Buffalo under coach Sean McDermott and his defensive coordinator, Leslie Frazier. Babich was assistant defensive backs coach in 2017, safeties coach from 2018 through 2021 and linebackers coach in 2022 and 2023 before being promoted to defensive coordinator in 2024 and 2025. During those two seasons, his units ranked 10th in points allowed, eighth in opponent passer rating, 15th in yards allowed per play and 19th in sacks.
The Bills fired McDermott at the end of this season and the 42-year-old Babich, who interviewed for the Green Bay coordinator opening in 2024, opted to join forces with Jonathan Gannon.
“Very detailed,” former Bills and Packers defensive back
Micah Hyde said. “Very detailed each and every day. When the gameplan’s put in place, he knows the defense better than anybody in this building. Once the gameplan’s in, he’s just very detailed in giving it in his delivery. Even in practice and watching film, he’s very detail-oriented in where you should be, where your alignment is, what your assignment is, and from there you’re able to make plays.”
Linebackers Coach: Sam Siefkes
New defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon worked under esteemed former Vikings coach and defensive mastermind Mike Zimmer, and so did the new linebackers coach, 34-year-old Sam Siefkes.
A native of Oconomowoc, Wis., who played at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, Siefkes talked himself into an opportunity at Wisconsin in 2015, which he parlayed into becoming defensive coordinator at UW-Platteville for the 2016 and 2017 seasons before making the jump to FCS as defensive coordinator at Wofford from 2018 through 2020.
In 2021, he joined Zimmer’s staff as a quality-control coach. After a coaching change in Minnesota, Kevin O’Connell promoted Siefkes to assistant linebackers coach in 2022 before Siefkes joined Gannon as linebackers coach of the Cardinals in 2023 and 2024. He spent last year as defensive coordinator at Virginia Tech.
“Zimmer was really influential in opening my eyes to a different world,”
Siefkes said upon joining the Hokies. “Probably the best third-down guy I’ve ever been around. He taught me different ways to attack protections and offenses. That was really beneficial for my growth and getting to a spot like this.”
