While it’s been obvious to us for some time now that former Jets head coach Rex Ryan has been subtly working at getting his old job back at 1 Jets Drive, we’ve reached a point where it’s no longer subtle. At all.
Appearing on ESPN New York’s Bart and Hahn, Ryan praised the level of talent on the Jets roster and had this to say; “I look at it this way, blow it up? We’re going to blow the opponents up. There’s way too much talent on this team to play the way we’ve been playing. How hard can you get a guy to play? That’s the thing. Nobody has seen a team going to play as hard is this team is going to lay in the future, trust me, if I’m the guy”.
Notice Ryan twice using the term “we” before even getting to the open acknowledgement that he wants the job.
Fired along with GM John Idzik back in 2014, Ryan was at the helm the last time the Jets had any modicum of success, winning four playoff games on the road in 2009 and 2010. From that point forward however, the talent dwindled under Idzik and Ryan’s big, bold, brash predictions became more more of a circus side show than NFL football team.
Ryan would go 26-38 with no playoff appearances over his final four seasons with the Jets before going to Buffalo for two years in which he would go 15-16. The son former Jets, Bears and Eagles Coach Buddy Ryan hasn’t coached since.
While having Rex Ryan patrolling the sidelines at MetLife Stadium would likely end in failure, there are a few reasons why Woody Johnson may at least entertain the notion.
Given the recent revelations regarding his behind-the-scenes meddling, unless he’s willing to grossly overpay, Johnson isn’t going to attract any premium candidates. Meanwhile, Ryan is begging for the job.
With another rise in ticket prices on the way and Aaron Rodgers likely on the way out, Johnson may try to sell the “good ole’ days” mantra with Ryan in hopes of appealing to those fans who remember only the good while forgetting the bad.
Although based on a JetNation twitter poll we ran yesterday, fans appear to be pretty much split down the middle on a do-over with Rex Ryan.
Setting aside the fact that Ryan is one of the few options who truly wants the Jets job along with the nostalgia of past limited success, there are some actual football-related reasons why Ryan wouldn’t be the worst idea.
Ryan’s late collapse with the Jets wasn’t a coincidence. The team was essentially stripped of their talent as GM John Idzik oversaw some of the worst drafts in team history. At one point, in need of a cornerback in a deep market, Idzik’s “big fish” free agent addition was fourth-string dolphins cornerback Dimitri Patterson, who went AWOL and never played a game for Gang Green.
Give a coach a roster as bad as the one Ryan had and you’re bound to have multiple blowout losses on your resume. When you’re a defensive minded head coach and you’re having to used a washed up Jason Babin as one of your edge rushers, you know it’s gotten ugly.
However, even with the presence of some football reasons to consider him for the job, bringing Rex Ryan back just has the feel of a very “Jetsy” panic move that would blow up in the team’s face when all was said and done.
Ryan’s win against Tom Brady and Bill Belichick on the road in the playoffs is likely the high point of Jets fandom for anyone who didn’t witness Super Bowl III. But that was a long time ago. The league has changed and change is what the Jets need. Not a Rex repeat.
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