We like Rex Ryan. He’s a good coach. More importantly, he’s bringing that semi-contrived reality show drama to the NFL by constantly stirring the pot with the stuff he says.
On Tuesday, Ryan explained his past comment regarding his intention not to “kiss Bill Belichick’s rings.”
Ryan explained that he meant Belichick no disrespect, and then Ryan arguably proceeded to disrespect him.
“When I said that about Belichick, I’m just letting him know I’m not intimidated by him,” Ryan said, per the Associated Press. “He’s got the same position I have. We’re both head coaches in this league. He just happens to have a hell of a lot more Super Bowl wins. I don’t have a win. I understand that, but we’re not going to tiptoe our way through this thing.”
Ryan also addressed more generally his willingness to speak his mind.
“We’re going to be ourselves and I’m going to be myself,” he said. “How much more motivation are they going to get by putting a quote from me on the wall, saying I believe in my football team and I’m not going to be intimidated by a coach or anyone else?
“If that’s where you’re going to draw motivation from, hell, we’ll probably kick your ass.”
Actually, we think Ryan has a point. The Giants said that they were going to beat the Patriots in Super Bowl XLII. The declaration was shocking, given that the Pats were 18-0 entering the game and that the Giants struggled before getting hot late in the 2007 season.
But the big talk didn’t keep them from delivering.
Then again, the problem with talking big is that, if the team fails to make good, the folks who were talking big end up looking foolish. Indeed, if everyone talked big every week, half the league would consistently come off as a collection of buffoons.
Still, the point we continue to take away from these blurbs about Rex Ryan is that the apple is resting against the base of the tree, and that’s one of the reasons why the sons of Buddy Ryan haven’t ascended more quickly to NFL head-coaching positions.
For Browns defensive coordinator Rob Ryan, his own ability to claim one of the 32 most coveted positions in sports now hinges on one thing -- whether Rex can turn his words into wins.