ATLANTA, GA – Buffalo Bills defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier announced he was taking a sabbatical from coaching earlier this year, shocking the football world.
Saturday night the former Minnesota Vikings head coach was in Atlanta for his induction into the Black College Football Hall of Fame. The former Alcorn State star said he’s still on a break, but he has visited some training camps. Earlier this month Josina Anderson of CBS Sports reported Frazier spent time with the Green Bay Packers and Washington Commanders.
He didn’t give a time frame on Saturday but he did say he wants to get back to coaching at some point.
“I’m not sure when I’ll go back on the football field, I want to explore some things. I’ll just see. I went and visited a few camps over the last few weeks just to see what it would be like. But I think I will want to get back. I want to see what the fall is like. But I enjoy coaching and I enjoy having a chance to impact lives for the Lord. And at some point, I’ll be back on the sidelines.”
Frazier was part of a prestigious 2023 Black College Football Hall of Fame Class that included Albert Lewis, Tyrone McGriff and Henry Lawrence. He first made his mark on the NFL as a defensive back with the Chicago Bears, playing defensive back on the hallowed 1985 team. But that might not have happened if not for his coach, Marino Casem.
Frazier was a defensive star at Alcorn State, picking off 20 passes in just three years before declaring for the NFL Draft despite a torn hamstring injury. He didn’t get drafted, partially because every time he would run the 40 yard dash, he would hurt himself again. He refused to run for the Bears, which prompted the team’s brass to find out what to make of them.
“They said what is it about this guy – is there a problem? Is he gonna give you guys trouble,” Frazier remembered. “And Coach Casem said ‘if you sign Leslie Frazier, you’ll never regret it. He’s a diamond in the rough. He’ll end up not only making your team – he’s going to start for your team.”
Over 40 years later, it appears that if Leslie Frazier gets something in his mind, he’s going to get it done.