Maxman Posted December 29, 2014 Share Posted December 29, 2014 Rex Ryan walks off the field Sunday, perhaps for the last time as Jets head coach.Photo: Getty Images Week 17 for the head coach of a 4-12 team shouldn't matter, especially not when you've now gone four straight years without the playoffs. But the Jets' 37-24 win on Sunday afternoon in Miami should matter plenty to head coach Rex Ryan, and especially owner Woody Johnson. In fact, it should be a step towards a seventh season here in New York for Rex. Six years ago he came here to win Super Bowls, vowing to never kiss the rings of Bill Belichick in New England. A swagger came with him, a desire to see a franchise whose lone bright accomplishment came in the Orange Bowl in 1968 and see them lifted from punchlines into contenders. That promising start, twice within his stated goal of the Super Bowl, has given way to a 24-38 record over the past four seasons and no playoffs. But as Sunday afternoon against a very good Dolphins team will show even the most bitter of Rex Ryan skeptics - this team still cares for him. Still fights. Still battles. Still is led by this man. And there is no reason for Woody to fire him. Consider that there have been other seasons here in New York where the locker room has been lost in years where there have been far more victories on the schedule, such as 2009 when a 9-7 Jets team collapsed down the stretch and a future Hall of Famer under center couldn't deliver them to the postseason. But Ryan's teams haven't fallen apart, and despite the fact that they have inferior talent in several key positions, they still managed to play hard and win a few games down the stretch. Sure, there were some brutal games this season.Two blowout losses to the Bills and a horrible road loss at the Chargers come to mind rather easily as some of the worst contests played by any team in the league this season. But seven of this team's losses have come by a combined 34 points, showing that Ryan managed to coach up this team to a decent standard. If some of those games went another way, if some of those close losses to the Patriots (twice), Packers, Lions, Bears and Vikings went the other way, perhaps we're talking about another 'Rextension' here in New York. Four wins is not the right direction for this team, not after an 8-8 record a season ago and playoff expectations. But given the plebeian if not downright pathetic offseason by general manager John Idzik, it might actually have been a tremendous coaching job by Rex this time around. His secondary was lacking starpower, the byproduct of Idzik swinging and missing on key free agents. There was no true quarterback competition either, again the byproduct of management wanting their guy - Geno Smith - to start over four-time Pro Bowl quarterback Mike Vick, who was instantly relegated to clipboard duty upon signing this year. Lack of talent at wide receiver to start this year, issues along the offensive line and 19 draft picks over the past two years that have produced precious little outside of Sheldon Richardson– all factors that led to 12 losses. And all factors outside the control the head coach. Can't blame Rex for these issues and he can't be fired for them either. If fans were really fair, there would be a plane flying over Florham Park on Monday, a banner that reads 'One More Year for Rex' in tow. He has been the good and faithful servant of now two general managers, a head coach that has proven he can win. A man who his players still want to step on the field for. It would be unfair – not that life is very fair – but it would be unfair for Rex to pay the price for Idzik's poor job at building this team. He may be the only head coach in NFL history to earn the right to come back after a 4-12 season, a fourth straight year without the playoffs. But a man whose eulogy has been written a dozen times over the course of the past few years has made his case to his owner that he deserves one more year with a full roster, a competent general manager and a little support to turn this thing around. Rex deserves one more year to show that he is still the coach that brought this franchise close in 2009 and again the next year. Sunday showed he is able to still do that. If Woody is smart, next year will show that he can. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maxman Posted December 29, 2014 Author Share Posted December 29, 2014 I will hang up and take your call off the air. (This should be fun lol). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRy56 Posted December 29, 2014 Share Posted December 29, 2014 I would not be opposed to bringing Rex back as long as it's the new general managers choice. Never going to happen though so it's all a moot point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeremy2020 Posted December 29, 2014 Share Posted December 29, 2014 Seriously, "let it go". Time for Rex to move on and the Jets to hire another sub-par coach. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnnyLV Posted December 29, 2014 Share Posted December 29, 2014 Apparently "playing hard" (on occassion) trumps all other attributes of a head coach. Stupid, stupid article. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kelticwizard Posted December 29, 2014 Share Posted December 29, 2014 I absolutely favor bringing Rex back as a coach. Partly for the fact that his two GMs were lummoxes of the first order, partly for the fact that the extended shrieks of agony from the posters appeal to my contrarian side. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BurnleyJet Posted December 29, 2014 Share Posted December 29, 2014 All through the game, the commentators, where crying about Rex, they hate he's getting fired, all those easy self writing stories, and Circus lines will leave town with him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Jets fan Posted December 29, 2014 Share Posted December 29, 2014 How can a jets writer not know the correct year they played in the super bowl ? Also wasn't it 2008 not 2009 that Favre played? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PatriotReign37 Posted December 29, 2014 Share Posted December 29, 2014 Its not too late to lease out a pro Rex billboard. I believe there is a couple coming online right near Metlife too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrazyCarl40 Posted December 29, 2014 Share Posted December 29, 2014 6 years. Below .500 record. 3 offensive coordinators. Rex Ryan got a reprieve last season. You don't escape the noose twice. Bye Rex. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southparkcpa Posted December 29, 2014 Share Posted December 29, 2014 6 years..... only ONE double digit winning season. There are 10 win teams with NO PLAYOFFS. REX is not a complete HC. Its that simple. Let him go ruin Atlanta or Chicago. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RutgersJetFan Posted December 29, 2014 Share Posted December 29, 2014 Oh good. A fresh, new topic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Troll Posted December 29, 2014 Share Posted December 29, 2014 How much of that article was copy/pasted from last year's post-week 17 "Rex deserves one more year" article? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jolot Posted December 29, 2014 Share Posted December 29, 2014 Just another reminder beat writers are not jet fans, some of them are not even big fans of the sport they are assigned to cover, it is a job , rex makes that job easy and fun for them..they have no interest in what is best for the fan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jolot Posted December 29, 2014 Share Posted December 29, 2014 The secondary we played yesterday was worse than ours and the Dolphins won 8 games. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustInFudge Posted December 29, 2014 Share Posted December 29, 2014 I agree. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
afosomf Posted December 29, 2014 Share Posted December 29, 2014 Rexey deserves 6 more yrs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Troll Posted December 29, 2014 Share Posted December 29, 2014 The secondary we played yesterday was worse than ours and the Dolphins won 8 games. Grimes is an All-Pro, so no. But Finnegan is sh*t. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sg3 Posted December 29, 2014 Share Posted December 29, 2014 1. When will we see the pics of WRECKS and Idzik being escorted to their cars by security? 2. When is the official announcement presser? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SMC Posted December 29, 2014 Share Posted December 29, 2014 Since Rex ' s high water mark of going 9-2 to start 2010 (18-9 to start his career, .667 winning percentage), Rex has gone 28-41 (.400 winning percentage). That deserves another year? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jamesr Posted December 29, 2014 Share Posted December 29, 2014 OK, Rex wasn't responsible for the personnel, I get it. What about all the bits he is responsible for? Playing predictable, "safe", game-losing offense ("2nd and 10, let's run it up the gut for 2 yards again") Regularly giving up long scoring drives at the half / end of game Routinely giving up first downs on 3rd and long Repeated procedural issues (12 men on the field etc) that result in penalties & wasted time outs "These are the details we need to iron out" coming out at every post-game press conference, only for the same crap to happen again the following week I'm sure there are plenty more. Time to move on. It's been fun, but it's not funny any more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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