Joe Namath says the Jets think they’re better than they really are because Rex Ryan has made them overconfident. Ryan disagrees with that assessment.
In fact, Ryan says his confidence in his team is one of his strengths as a coach, and he’s not going to change for Namath or anyone else.
“The great thing is I’m confident with our football team,” Ryan said, in comments distributed by the Jets’ PR staff. “There’s no question about it. I’ve told you this many times, I’ve never gone into a game I didn’t think I’d win. [I] haven’t won them all, but I certainly think we can and will. I’m not going to change who I am because Joe Namath said something. Namath can come in here, and if he can still throw, we’ll have him as a backup quarterback, but you know what? He doesn’t know our team. He’s on the outside. Even though he’s a Jet, and once you’re a Jet, you’re always a Jet, but he’s on the outside. He’s not in these meetings. I think if he was, he’d be shocked with the preparation.”
Namath said the Jets looked unprepared for the Raiders in Sunday’s loss, but Ryan said that’s false.
“I welcome him to come out here and watch our guys prepare,” Ryan said. “He’d see a team that, in my opinion, prepares as well as any team I’ve been around. I disagree with him.”