Rex Ryan Or Bill Belichick: It's Hard To Like Either

Rex Ryan, is at it again.  The larger-than-life head coach of the New York Jets has opened the castle gates for war, against the New England Patriots in this Sunday's AFC Divisional game, by specifically targeting head coach Bill Belichick and calling it 'personal.'  This routine is getting boring.

Ryan called out the three-time Super Bowl winning coach by repeating his tired mantra, the P-Word.

"This week, this is about Bill Belichick vs. Rex Ryan," the rotund Jets coach said, " There's no question.  It's personal.  It's about him and myself, and that's what it's going to come down to."

"Personal."  We've heard that word come from Ryan's mouth too many times the past couple of weeks.

First, "It's personal" was repeated six times by Ryan at a press conference when news of a foot-fetish video, allegedly narrated by the head coach, was brought up.  The usually boisterous Ryan hid under the P-Word like a grilled suspect would plead the fifth. 

Next it was Ryan's tireless quest to beat Peyton Manning and the Colts had him uttering those those words.  Ryan was tired of losing to the quarterback and used the P-Word as motivation for his team.

Now, Ryan kicks the shins of Belichick, as the Jets prepare to face the Patriots at Gillette Stadium this Sunday, and calls it motivation.  Again, it's "personal."

Belichick, ever the, ahem,  jester, uncharacteristically volleyed back, " I might have a little quickness on him," he joked.  "He probably has a little strength and power on me."  That's about as much comedy styling as you'll get with the dour coach wearing his trademark dingy hoodie.

Ryan has uttered inflammatory words at the Patriots coach a few times.  Before their first game against the Patriots, he said, "I'm not here to kiss Belichick's rings." Even after last month's 45-3 beat down, Ryan came out with this tidbit, "Trust me, we will remember this."  Really?  How could you forget?

I can't think of any two people it's harder to root for.  It's like deciding who would you rather be stuck in an elevator with: Rosie O'Donnell or Joy Behar?  I'd rather be stuck in a locked men's room with a drunken Andy Dick if I had to make the decision between any of them.

Ryan's season long escapades have been widely publicized from his foul-mouthed episodes on "Hard Knocks," his wig-wearing press conference,  his handling of criminally-charged Jets players to the kinky foot tapes.  He continues to rock the boat and claims it takes the pressure off his team.  Picking on a coach with a 15-5 playoff record sounds like plopping a fatter early-season Ryan on the shoulders of the Jets.  Oh yeah, Ryan did finally exorcise the Manning demons last week--even though the Colts had 18 players listed on the injured reserve.

At the opposite end of the publicity-seeking spectrum is the hooded, personality-void, Belichick.  The sour-puss coach says about as much as the mute guy in Penn and Teller and he is about as funny as Dane Cook.  Belichick's insincere, two-finger handshake with former Jets coach Eric Mangini told you everything you care to know about the future Hall of Famer.  Everyone calls the Pats coach a genius but too many of his CIA tactics come into question. Remember the Spygate scandal?

Neither Belichick or Ryan are really well-liked by anyone but their own players.  They have split their four meeting since Ryan took over as the Jets' head coach and if history is any indicator, the two teams will be charged and ready to go all out for their coaches.

Ryan continues to give his verbal wet-willies to the Patriots.  He couldn't resist criticizing their quarterback, Tom Brady,  for attending to a Broadway play instead of watching the Jets play last Saturday.   Meanwhile as expected, not one mumble has been heard from Belichick.   

"It's a level playing field," Ryan said.  "Now, it's coming down to me raising my level."

Maybe if he was raising his fork in a chili eating competition, I would bet on Ryan.  Oh wait, he had lap-band surgery.  I'll bet on Belichick in that contest too.

Rex Ryan and Mark Sanchez Winning as the Jets Odd Couple

New York Jets head coach, Rex Ryan and his second year quarterback, Mark Sanchez, may be forming one of the great bromances.  Maybe its not exactly Walsh and Montana,  Holmgren and Favre or Louis and Rick in "Casablanca."  Let's say it is more like Unger and Madison. 

Believe it or not Ryan has won playoff games in more seasons than New York Giants head coach Tom Coughlin.  Pretty amazing, considering that Coughlin has been around the Meadowlands for seven seasons, while Ryan hopped on board in 2009---the same year the Jets drafted the USC signal-caller.

Now both coaches go in different directions for the second year in a row.

Now,  the disparate partners (Ryan and Sanchez) will pull a Hope and Crosby as they hit the road to New England where they will meet their division rivals, the Patriots next Sunday.

After Saturday's last-second victory against the Indianapolis Colts, 17-16, in an AFC wild card match-up,  the Jets can't afford to rest.  Awaiting them will be the anti-Ryan, Bill Belichick and his better half QB, Tom Brady.

Ryan and Sanchez couldn't be at more opposite ends of the social spectrum.  Sanchez, the second year QB, and Adrian Grenier lookalike,  came to New York with all the perks having a glamorous career as a USC quarterback could provide.  There weren't any shortages of dates with starlets and a shirtless photo-spread in GQ started all the talk about Sanchez living up to being the reincarnation of Joe Namath.

Ryan, on the other hand, came to New York with loud-mouth bravado and a girth to match.  His free-wheeling coaching style made the Jets the focus of a number of scandals, incidents and controversies.  This season alone has been a non-stop collection of Page Six entries.  There was HBO's "Hard Knocks," the Inez Sainz incident, the Braylon Edwards DUI, all the old dirt dug up on former Jets quarterback Bret Favre and finally the foot-fetish video.

Off the field the Jets duo are as different as Times Square and Wall Street.  Ryan has been prone to wearing wigs at press conferences and being photographed giving Dolphin fans the finger in a Florida honky-tonk, while the subdued Sanchez has only lived up to a Broadway Joe reputation by attending musicals on The Great White Way.

While Sanchez shows his affinity for the footlights of Broadway,  Ryan has shown his predilection for just the feet.

Still, Ryan continues to ruffle feathers and incite controversy while proving his large persona is comparable to his coaching ability.

Make no mistake about it, Sanchez has come a long way this season and he is lugging Ryan with him.  It was Sanchez who won the game yesterday at Lukas Oil Field.  His last minute drive has become sort of the norm for the Jets signal caller.  The Colts Peyton Manning almost pulled another last minute victory from his bag of audibles, but the last 53 seconds of the game were all Sanchez's.  He seems to play from behind with a veteran player's panache.

The Jets now know they have a quarterback who can perform in crucial situations and win games if they are close.  Sanchez already has more playoff victories than Namath and is only the second rookie quarterback to win his first two playoff games.  After finally beating the Colts, Sanchez is now 3-1 in playoff games.

The Jets travel to Gillette Stadium to face their nemesis, and arguably the best NFL team, the Patriots as big underdogs.  They have been given about as much of a chance of winning on Sunday as a red-winged black bird has of surviving in Arkansas.

Except for dimming Brady's star by comparing his skills to Manning's last week, Ryan has been relatively quiet since the seven "it's personal" comments regarding the foot-fetish video.  There are still six days for Sexy Rexy to stir up some sort of melodrama.

The road to the Super Bowl gets harder through playoff powerhouse New England.  The Pats thumped the Jets by 42 points last month and, even then, the brash Ryan still had the gall to disrespect Brady. 

Ryan continues to lose pounds and gain bravado, but it is Sanchez  who must take control of this season's third meeting with the Patriots.  The Jets beat a Colts team with 18 players on the injured reserve list.  The only injury the Jets must worry about this Sunday is Brady's bruised ego.  The teams are familiar with each other and have plenty of game film to prove it.

The New York Giants are out of the playoffs...again.  Ryan and Sanchez have the back pages of the local tabloids to themselves.  I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

Rex Ryan Tugs On Super Manning's Cape

The playoff game this Saturday between the New York Jets and Indianapolis Colts just got 'personal' and Jets head coach, and alleged foot fancier, Rex Ryan is zeroing in on Colts QB Peyton Manning.   Last year's crushing de-feet (it's just too easy) to the Colts in the AFC Championship Game must have left a lasting footprint in the sand of Ryan's mind.  He is, plain and simple, tired of losing to the Colts.

Ryan ranted yesterday about his track record (he has lost 5 of 6) against the Colts going back to his Baltimore Raven days as a defensive coach.  The brash coach called playing and losing to Manning "personal" and he vowed to "put the shoe on the other foot."  Considering the recent foot fetish video allegedly made by Ryan and his wife making the rounds, it was an unfortunate choice of words.

Wasn't it just last week that the once blustery coach was quietly saying (six times) it was  'personal'  in response to all the questions regarded the foot videos.  Now Ryan is back to his old outrageous self.  If it seems illogical to  goad your arch-nemesis right before the big showdown, you don't know Ryan.  Until the whole foot thing happened, there wasn't a microphone he wouldn't run to.

This might be the right time for Ryan to play Lex Luthor against Peyton's Superman.  While Manning has scorched Ryan's defenses for 12 TDs and only 2 INTs in six games previous games, this year Ryan finally has a better team.

To avoid another loss to Indianapolis, the Jets traded for San Diego cornerback, and Manning's kryptonite, Antonio Cromartie.  The former Charger joins Darelle Revis to form a formidable pair in the corners to foil the Colts short passing game.  They also brought in safety Brodney Pool and former Dolphin foe Jason Taylor.  The Gang Greens all here to stop Supermanning.

"I've waited a full year for this.  We'll see what happens," Ryan said of Saturday's rematch.  "I know I feel confident.  I feel confident in the men around me," he said. 

Ryan kept ratcheting up the heat.  "I don't know when I'm going to beat him, but I want it to be Saturday night," continued Ryan in his best villain imitation, " Peyton Manning has beaten me twice in the playoffs.  That's well-documented.  You've got all the stats.  But this is about this year, and I've waited a whole year for this."

The Jets are facing a Colts team which has won four straight after a series of injuries to key players (17 place on the injured reserve) had people writing them off a month ago.  This is the team's ninth consecutive playoff appearance but, for the first time they look vulnerable. 

Two of Manning's favorite targets, Dallas Clark and Austin Collie, are sidelined and the running game has picked up with the return of Joseph Addai but it won't have the Jets running in fear.  Manning has been winging the ball like no other season before.  He attempted a staggering 679 passes but was only sacked an amazing league-low 16 times.

Manning hasn't responded to Ryan's chatter, but he is still the master at countering blitzing schemes like Ryan's.  In the end, Peyton Manning and the Colts will be trying to prove they are worthy too.

Ryan's outburst was relatively tame to some of his other raves in the past. Some say it calls attention to himself and puts pressure on the Jets players.  Ryan's rant doesn't guarantee that the Jets will rise to the occasion or the defense will figure Manning out.  It is a war cry for the redemption he craves and diverts attention from the foot-fetish hoopla.  'Personal' has a totally new context with Ryan now.

The Giants are out of the playoffs.  The Jets are the only football team in New York.  If Ryan can beat the Colts on Saturday, it will be quite a feet.  I couldn't resist.