Rex Ryan On Coaching: I’m ‘tired of getting f--ked’

[SAR I]

He was bold, brash, confident and fearless. But in the end, he was shafted in the very place that he had once embraced.

A little more than a month after the Bills fired Rex Ryan two years into a blockbuster five-year contract, the iconoclastic coach reflected on his brief run in Buffalo, his impending television debut and his never-ending chase to win the Super Bowl.

It was vintage Rex: Candid, funny and unapologetic, even if it meant taking some of the blame for what went terribly wrong in Buffalo.

"I set the expectations too high," Ryan told the Daily News in a wide-ranging interview on Monday night, his first since getting fired before the Bills season finale against the Jets. "Like, boy, that's a shock. In a way, I felt, why not us? I stepped in where the head coach had quit, the defensive coordinator quit and the quarterback quit on them. So, I thought that it was important at the time to say, 'You know what? Shoot, I believe in you. And I'm proud to be the coach here.' Every bit of that was true. I put that truck (with the Bills logo) around town. I was all-in. Even though those other three had quit, I wasn't a quitter. I was ready. And I wanted to be there. And I wanted to win. And I thought I could win."

"... Let me tell you, I stripped that damn truck the day I got fired," Ryan added with a laugh. "F--k you guys."

Ryan, who will move from the Buffalo area to his home in Tennessee after the Super Bowl, replaced the oversized Bills logo on his truck with Clemson colors since his son, Seth, plays for them.

"Dude, national champions," Ryan said. "I'm supporting a winner."

Ryan, who went 15-16 with the Bills, was unceremoniously dumped five days before the Bills faced his former team at MetLife Stadium because he didn't want to bench quarterback Tyrod Taylor. The organization didn't want to be exposed to paying Taylor more than $30 million in guarantees if he suffered a catastrophic injury in the final game. Ryan didn't want to bench his best signal caller for an inferior backup. So, he was gone after a 7-8 season.

Ryan admitted that the "people in town have been good to me" and "I enjoyed my time here," but he couldn't care less about the franchise's 17-year playoff drought anymore. After galvanizing the fan base and former Bills greats after Doug Marrone quit on all of them, Ryan will only be rooting for one of his former employers — and it's not the Bills.

"I don't wish them bad will," Ryan said. "I don't. But I don't wish them luck, either. I'll be honest: I don't wish them good luck. I don't wish them bad luck. I just don't wish them luck. I wish the Jets luck."

Rex Ryan never seemed to have the full support of his owner in Buffalo, Terry Pegula.

(Matt Dunham/AP)

Getting whacked after 8-8 and 7-8 seasons is ludicrous, but it's obvious that the Bills aren't exactly the gold standard of NFL franchises. Rumblings of back-door meetings between owners Terry and Kim Pegula and players before offensive coordinator Greg Roman was fired after two games were the first indications that Ryan & Co. were in for a bumpy ride this season.

Ryan, who will make his first foray into the TV world by being a panelist on ESPN's NFL Sunday Countdown on Super Bowl Sunday, still has about $16.5 million left on the final three years of his Bills contract. The firing stung him, even if it didn't make him eternally angry.

"I'm really not that bitter and maybe that $15 million is one of the reasons," Ryan said. "I'm not bitter, man. … Yeah, I'm hurt. I was hurt by it. There's no question. But bitter ain't how I feel. I'm like, 'Shoot, if they never wanted me here, then fine. I ain't here. I'm not your coach anymore. Fine and dandy.' But I got an opportunity in front of me that a lot of guys don't get. I'm going to see where it takes me. Maybe this a different career and I really enjoy it. I'm hoping that's the way it is. Maybe I get into and I don't like it. Maybe they don't like me. Maybe I go back to doing something I love, which is coaching. I'll never say never. I'm a young guy still. … I'm healthy. But bitter? Nah. Not bitter, man. I'm really not."

You can tell that Ryan's fire to win a Super Bowl as a head coach still burns even as he prepares to spend at least one year in television. (He's unsure what media role will suit him best yet at this point). You can hear in his voice that he still wants to hoist the Lombardi Trophy one day.

"That's what drove me over anything," said Ryan, who is 65-68, including four playoff wins, in eight seasons as a head coach. "I wanted to put myself in a situation where I thought I could be successful and where I'd have support. Because I think that's all I need. That's going to be debated and questioned. They'll say I'm a .500 coach. … There's a reason why things happened. I know I put forth an effort to try to build a championship team and to be a champion. And it hasn't worked out. Hopefully if I get back into it one day, I'll be able to do it. Sometimes you can't accomplish all your goals in life. I like competing against the very best. There's no doubt about it. Unfortunately, I was never good enough to win it all… you know, so far."

He never got a fair chance to do much of anything with the Bills despite the hope surrounding his arrival. Ryan didn't have a first or fourth-round pick in his first draft. His second draft included a first-rounder (Shaq Lawson) who missed the first six games this season recovering from surgery and a second-rounder (Reggie Ragland) who missed all of 2016 with a torn ACL.

"I wasn't real lucky coming in there with the situation I did," Ryan said. "Hey, that's the way it goes. No excuses. We went in there and did the best we could. I wish things would have been different. I wish Sammy Watkins wouldn't have had a broken foot and been healthy the whole year. I wish our draft picks would have played. There's a lot of things that I wished for, but at the end of the day, I'm responsible for the product on the field."

Although Ryan admitted that there's a sense of unfulfillment from the past two seasons, he pointed out that "It wasn't up to me to leave. That's not the case. They told me, 'Get out.' So I did."

"It felt weird the last Sunday of the season when I wasn't on the sideline for the first time in 30 years," Ryan said. "That really felt weird. That's going to take a little getting used to. Because you miss the work building up to it. There's nothing like gameday. So, that was weird. The Bills were playing the Jets and I was on a plane. And when I landed, I wanted to find out what the score was."

Rex Ryan had a 15-16 record with the Bills over parts of two seasons.

(Brett Carlsen/Getty Images)

There was a clear lack of communication, trust and respect within the organization that ultimately did in Ryan. The disconnect between the front office and coaching staff was troubling. General manager Doug Whaley's claim that he didn't know why Ryan was fired revealed plenty about the leadership within the organization.

"I wasn't going to take just any job," Ryan said of joining the Bills after six years with the Jets. "I wanted to make sure it was the right thing and that I was going to get the backing of the owners and general manager after what I went through (in the final two years with former train-wreck Jets general manager John Idzik). I wanted to make sure everyone was on the same page. That's what I was looking for. I wasn't going to take just any job. Obviously, it never worked out."

The Pegulas offered no concrete reason for giving Ryan his walking papers (he would have been fired after the season regardless) other than to give the corporate nonsense of "moving in a different direction."

"It doesn't matter what I think," Ryan said. "When the owners make that decision that it's time to get rid of you, then they get rid of you. I've been around this business long enough to know that's how it works. That's the reality of the business. I've been real fortunate. I got two opportunities when a lot of great coaches don't get any. How many were realistic opportunities? I'm not sure, but at least I had a chances to step up to the plate. So, that's something I'll always be grateful for."

"Do I still wake up at night thinking about, 'Dang, if we could have made this thing work or if we could have done that … in all the years even back to my Jet days? Yeah," Ryan continued. "Could it have been different if Brett Favre would have stayed at quarterback? I think about all those kinds of things. But at the end of the day, I got to look forward. … I've had some great moments coaching and I've had some bad ones. Unfortunately, in this business, those bad memories stay with you more than some of the good memories."

Ryan won't be returning as a defensive coordinator ("Right now that doesn't interest me at all."), but will he ever get another chance to be in charge?

"The one thing about (being on TV) is that you don't lose," Ryan said. "You'll remember every damn loss. But the wins? You don't necessarily remember. So, it takes a lot out of you. I'm tired of getting f---ked. Unless it's a real situation, there's no sense of getting into it again."

The politics of his profession have taken its toll, but coaching is in his blood. It's forever part of him.

If Rex Ryan has another chance — a real chance — he'll be back.

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/football/rex-ryan-nfl-future-tired-f-ked-article-1.2960277

SAR I

[Warfish]

Rex doesn't like getting ****ed?  So tempted to make wife/foot/strap-on joke here, seriously.

Who cares what Rex wants, same way who cares about Mark Buttfumble, Geno Bust or Ryan sh*tzpatrick.

The past is the past, why do we (collectively) spend sooooooooooooo much effort tracksing, monitoring, charting and posting over gusy who are long gone and will never be back?

Half the threads on this board some days seem to be about long gone former Jets.  Not even successful ones at that.

[BigRy56]

Welcome to the JETS fanbase Rex! I always knew you were a lifer.

I wonder if he'll get on JetNation?

[SAR I]

1 minute ago, Warfish said:

The past is the past, why do we (collectively) spend sooooooooooooo much effort tracksing, monitoring, charting and posting over gusy who are long gone and will never be back?

The truth?

There is nothing to talk about, nothing to be remotely excited about with the current Jets.  Apparently we'd rather talk about Herman Edwards and Rex Ryan more than Todd Bowles.  Apparently we'd rather reminisce about Chad Pennington and Mark Sanchez than talk about Christian Hackenberg.  Not saying it's right or wrong; just answering your question.

SAR I

[SAR I]

1 minute ago, BigRy56 said:

Welcome to the JETS fanbase Rex! I always knew you were a lifer.

I wonder if he'll get on JetNation?

He's clearly lobbying Woody for another shot in New York, wonderful.

SAR I

[nyjunc]

1 minute ago, SAR I said:

He's clearly lobbying Woody for another shot in New York, wonderful.

SAR I

sign me up, who wouldn't trade Bowles for rex?

[Warfish]

Just now, SAR I said:

The truth?

There is nothing to talk about, nothing to be remotely excited about with the current Jets.

I don't agree, the untapped, unknown future is always more interesting than the warmed over wet sh*te that is the past for this franchise.

Know what I think?  I think we have far too many fans who refuse to stop fighting not just the last war, but the last five wars.  They refuse to accept they were dead wrong on player X or Coach Y, and so have to make threads about them for time eternal long after they're gone, to somehow justify their past errors in projection/judgement/prognostication.

Mark my words, one of the most posted threads we'll have two years from now......."Geno Smith was our Best Recent QB!"

 

[JustInFudge]

BRING HIM BACK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[munchmemory]

Rex has always been, and will always be, a vulgar huckster.  

[munchmemory]

1 minute ago, JiF said:

BRING HIM BACK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

For a horse whipping? Absolutely.

[sourceworx]

Come back home where you belong, Rex!

[Bugg]

He fired Jim Schwartz, so he's now back to making stuff up. Again. he remains a defense-first and only guy in an offense-oriented NFL, a beeper salesman in an iphone world. Once teams figured out how to beat his defenses, he's not even all that good at defense anyway. May as well stay on ESPN because no  NFL coaching jobs will be coming his way any time soon. It's one thing to suck and be polite, quite another to be an arrogant douchebag and suck. Nobody wants him.  

[rex-n-effect]

I love that Rex didn't get to coach the last game because he refused to bench Taylor to try to win that last meaningless game. That's such a Rex Ryan thing to do and it finally caught up with him after years of screwing us out of favorable draft picks. 

 

[nyjunc]

3 minutes ago, rex-n-effect said:

I love that Rex didn't get to coach the last game because he refused to bench Taylor to try to win that last meaningless game. That's such a Rex Ryan thing to do and it finally caught up with him after years of screwing us out of favorable draft picks. 

 

what coach would go out to try and lose a game? show one me decent coach please.  the Bills did it to save money not for a higher pick.  that's why the Bills are the Bills.

[T0mShane]

Typical fake tough guy bullsh*t. 

[JustInFudge]

33 minutes ago, munchmemory said:

For a horse whipping? Absolutely.

No, to be the Head Coach of the New York Jets.  He was the best thing to ever happen to this god forsaken franchise. 

I miss him deeply. 

[ASH1962]

46 minutes ago, SAR I said:

The truth?

There is nothing to talk about, nothing to be remotely excited about with the current Jets.  Apparently we'd rather talk about Herman Edwards and Rex Ryan more than Todd Bowles.  Apparently we'd rather reminisce about Chad Pennington and Mark Sanchez than talk about Christian Hackenberg.  Not saying it's right or wrong; just answering your question.

SAR I

You are crazy, Bubba Gump Bowltite is the best coach this organization has ever hired and should remain here for the next 15-20 years so that we have continuity.

[Dcat]

Ryan once again blaming others for his coaching failures (while pretending to take the blame himself).  This guy will  always have an infant's mentality and level of maturity.  We were all duped when he came here. After reading the article (written by the little worm, Manish), I'm fairly certain that he will never be an NFL HC again.  He has dug his own grave.  An owner would have to be insane to trust him.  One word fits best: Buffoon.

[Dcat]

55 minutes ago, Warfish said:

Rex doesn't like getting ****ed?  So tempted to make wife/foot/strap-on joke here, seriously.

Who cares what Rex wants, same way who cares about Mark Buttfumble, Geno Bust or Ryan sh*tzpatrick.

The past is the past, why do we (collectively) spend sooooooooooooo much effort tracksing, monitoring, charting and posting over gusy who are long gone and will never be back?

Half the threads on this board some days seem to be about long gone former Jets.  Not even successful ones at that.

the alternative is to read all the depressing, negative posts on the Jets moves so far this off-season, including yours.

[Dcat]

52 minutes ago, nyjunc said:

sign me up, who wouldn't trade Bowles for rex?

NFW

Both suck balls

[varjet]

Rex took the Jets to back to back AFCCGs and my guess is has their best playoff record since Weeb Ewbank.  The Jets had a combination that worked with him, for awhile.

But that is the key point:  you don't solve a football team's problems by hiring a single person.  You need a team and an effective structure.  I am not convinced that Bowles is hopeless, but he needs support.

That was Rex and Schotty, with a Rookie/Yr1 QB, that went to back to back AFCCG and thrilled the fanbase.  The stadium was packed with rabid, happy fans.  Woody was the hero of the fanbase.  Everybody wanted to be a Jet fan.

It is doable, and it can be done again if done right.  But let's not forget what Rex was able to do here.  He deserves some credit and respect.  His roster collapsed, and his flaws were exposed.  And he did get into bed with 2 of the worst owners in the league.

If someone is smart, they bring Rex back, at least as a DC.  But Rex may just want to collect the Pegula's money.

[ScarletKnight89]

He got screwed his last year in New York and got screwed entirely in Buffalo.

He needs to go away for a few years and then he'll become more appealing to teams again. Fact of the matter is he made the playoffs and went on great runs his first two years as a HC. His performance since then is underwhelming. No matter how you want to look at it.

[Dcat]

17 minutes ago, JiF said:

No, to be the Head Coach of the New York Jets.  He was the best thing to ever happen to this god forsaken franchise. 

I miss him deeply. 

LOL.

How deep?  6"?  8"?  the size  of his foot?

[Beerfish]

Hey REx, how does it feel to take a top 3 defense in the league and turn it into trash?

[jett]

Coach our defense

[LIJetsFan]

23 minutes ago, JiF said:

No, to be the Head Coach of the New York Jets.  He was the best thing to ever happen to this god forsaken franchise. 

I miss him deeply. 

Idzik f*cked him over , that is not up for debate.  He brought us pretty far with Mark Sanchez under center for Pete sake.  Just saying.....

I'd def take him over Bowles.

[C Mart]

6 minutes ago, varjet said:

Rex took the Jets to back to back AFCCGs and my guess is has their best playoff record since Weeb Ewbank.  The Jets had a combination that worked with him, for awhile.

But that is the key point:  you don't solve a football team's problems by hiring a single person.  You need a team and an effective structure.  I am not convinced that Bowles is hopeless, but he needs support.

That was Rex and Schotty, with a Rookie/Yr1 QB, that went to back to back AFCCG and thrilled the fanbase.  The stadium was packed with rabid, happy fans.  Woody was the hero of the fanbase.  Everybody wanted to be a Jet fan.

It is doable, and it can be done again if done right.  But let's not forget what Rex was able to do here.  He deserves some credit and respect.  His roster collapsed, and his flaws were exposed.  And he did get into bed with 2 of the worst owners in the league.

If someone is smart, they bring Rex back, at least as a DC.  But Rex may just want to collect the Pegula's money.

he says he isn't interested in coming back as a DC..."Ryan won't be returning as a defensive coordinator ("Right now that doesn't interest me at all.")"

 

[JustInFudge]

3 minutes ago, LIJetsFan said:

Idzik f*cked him over , that is not up for debate.  He brought us pretty far with Mark Sanchez under center for Pete sake.  Just saying.....

I'd def take him over Bowles.

Tanny, Idzik and the entire Bills org.

We're talking about a guy who was a half from a Super Bowl with Mark ******* Sanchez as his QB.  Dude can coach with the best of them.

[nyjunc]

19 minutes ago, varjet said:

Rex took the Jets to back to back AFCCGs and my guess is has their best playoff record since Weeb Ewbank.  The Jets had a combination that worked with him, for awhile.

But that is the key point:  you don't solve a football team's problems by hiring a single person.  You need a team and an effective structure.  I am not convinced that Bowles is hopeless, but he needs support.

That was Rex and Schotty, with a Rookie/Yr1 QB, that went to back to back AFCCG and thrilled the fanbase.  The stadium was packed with rabid, happy fans.  Woody was the hero of the fanbase.  Everybody wanted to be a Jet fan.

It is doable, and it can be done again if done right.  But let's not forget what Rex was able to do here.  He deserves some credit and respect.  His roster collapsed, and his flaws were exposed.  And he did get into bed with 2 of the worst owners in the league.

If someone is smart, they bring Rex back, at least as a DC.  But Rex may just want to collect the Pegula's money.

he actually has the best postseason record though same % as Weeb:

1. Rex 4-2,

2. Weeb 2-1

3. Michaels 2-2

4. Herm 2-3

5. Parcells 1-1

6. Walton 1-2

7. Coslet 0-1

8. Mangini 0-1

 

Rex isn't coming back but I think rex and Macc would make a good combo.  I think rex's days as a Dc are over, my guess is he will go to TV full time.  

 

[pointman]

He wishes us luck? Oh man. Until that very line, for the last several years I was "f Rex" guy... now.. I feel sad.

[Dcat]

Just now, pointman said:

He wishes us luck? Oh man. Until that very line, for the last several years I was "f Rex" guy... now.. I feel sad.

fool me once, shame on you.  Fool me twice, shame on me.  

[C Mart]

16 minutes ago, LIJetsFan said:

Idzik f*cked him over , that is not up for debate.  He brought us pretty far with Mark Sanchez under center for Pete sake.  Just saying.....

I'd def take him over Bowles.

No thanks. His last.6 seasons as HC 41-54

7-8,  8-8, 4-12, 8-8, 6-10, 8-8 (2011) where people seem to forget the HC, to use a phrase so many here like to say, "lost the locker room"

[Bugg]

47 minutes ago, nyjunc said:

what coach would go out to try and lose a game? show one me decent coach please.  the Bills did it to save money not for a higher pick.  that's why the Bills are the Bills.

It's a cap league, sucks for the players, and is not fair, but that's reality. Yes, salary caps are an evil drag to set player salaries artificially low on the pretense otherwise sensible owners are morons(not Woody Johnson, but everyone else), but that's another argument for another day. Best for the Bills that Taylor not play in a week 17 meaningless game.  A coach  that appreciates being seen as a team player and since your team is out of the playoffs anyway does what is best for the franchise and goes along with that request from the GM and ownership.Ryan is not a team player.  And  instead winning meaningless December bum fights has always been Ryan's forte. 

[Adoni Beast]

Im glad he's not our head coach anymore. (Couldn't develop talent, had no eye for it, terrible organizational and managerial skills, no emphasis on offense.) 

But he is a Jet. He wanted to be here, loved the fanbase, and really went after New England when most people cower in their presence. I would take him as a DC, even though that will probably never happen.

 

[Bugg]

20 minutes ago, LIJetsFan said:

Idzik f*cked him over , that is not up for debate.  He brought us pretty far with Mark Sanchez under center for Pete sake.  Just saying.....

I'd def take him over Bowles.

Hard to see where bringing him back for a least season he had no business getting qualifies for fvkcing him over.Idzik may have been a failure, But based on what we now know about disorganizational chart at Florham Park, Ryan being retained for both of Idzik's years was an ownership decision. And so was clearing deadwood salaries.   Again, another example of Rex Ryan crapping the bed for months and then pretending winning a December bum fight was grounds for a parade.