12
Aug
2010
HBO Hard Knocks: New York Jets, Episode 1
(Photo: Photo: Al Pereira/Getty Images via NYMag.com
Last night, HBO premiered the first episode of this season’s edition of Hard Knocks featuring Rex Ryan and the New York Jets. I took the time to jot down my thoughts during the episode, which I’ve distilled below.
Essentially, this episode was about two things: Rex and Revis. Rex Ryan took center stage as expected and did not disappoint (especially in the cursing department), and Darrelle Revis was the central focus of the episode, despite (or more correctly, because of) his absence from camp.
The fine folks at JetTwit did a much better job breaking down last night’s episode than I ever could, but here are my running thoughts, in case anyone cares:
- If this show were about my favorite team, this intro would get me seriously physically aroused. I think I’m ready for football to start
- Cortland, NY is an awful town … as an alumnus of their rival Ithaca Bombers, I had the displeasure of visiting this beacon of crapitude several times during my college career, and this is not a place you want to spend your summers. But HBO managed to make it look better in 2 minutes of b-roll footage than it ever did during my time there. But I may be biased.
- It’s obvious that the Revis holdout will be big storyline. It must be maddening to have everyone asking about one player when you’re trying to lead a group of 60+ other guys who are all there to do their job
- Rex Ryan doesn’t look to have started shedding much weight yet from the lap band surgery.
- Here’s video of Rex’s opening speech to his players. His goals for the team – all 3 units – is to lead the league in wins. Radical strategy, there. But he’s definitely someone you’d want to play for. Rex is so oddly charismatic, but boy, he sure does say “fuck” a lot (and I mean a LOT – video NSFW for language):
- Rex wears black Chuck Taylors on the first day of camp … apparently this is his thing. And it elicits the “sexy Rexy” chant from a few male Jets fans, and he likes it. Read the rest of this entry »
25
Mar
2010
HBO’s Hard Knocks to feature the New York Jets
Rex Ryan is coming to HBO this summer - with or without the stomach (Photo: William Perlman/The Star-Ledger)
The New York Daily News is reporting that HBO has selected the New York Jets as the subject of their popular reality series “Hard Knocks”, which gives an up-close look into the day-to-day of an NFL training camp. This means that we’ll finally get an answer to the question that has been plaguing NFL fans for a long time now: What exactly does Rex Ryan eat for breakfast???
The Jets issued a statement yesterday, and plan to make an official announcement later today at their team headquarters in Florham Park, NY. HBO’s cameras will travel with the team to Cortland in upstate New York for camp, which begins in July. With players like Mark Sanchez, Darelle Revis, LaDanian Tomlinson and Antonio Cromartie, there is certainly plenty of potential for characters to emerge, and intriguing storylines to develop.
But certainly, the leading role here goes to Ryan, who has grown into one of the league’s biggest characters in record time, and has displayed a knack for saying exactly what’s on his mind, running his mouth, flipping the bird (and eating whatever’s on his plate) … whether the cameras are rolling or not. And that’s the kind of stuff that HBO is banking on.
UPDATE: It turns out that Rex Ryan recently underwent lap-band surgery to aid in his fight with obesity. What’s that, you ask? From the Huffington Post:
In a lap-band procedure, a plastic band is inserted that encircles a patient’s stomach, effectively shrinking it and curbing their appetite.
I had no idea. I guess that means we’re going to be waving bye-bye to that enormously rotund midsection of his. This is really throwing me for a loop. I mean, no more fat jokes at his expense? That accounts for like 66% of the content on this site.
Apparently seeing video of himself – and more specifically, his stomach – at a hockey game may have had something to do with Rex’s decision to have the procedure done.
WATCH VIDEO OF REX’S SOON-TO-BE-TRIM STOMACH AFTER THE JUMP
1
Feb
2010
Good Morning Miami from Rex Ryan!
Rex Ryan displaying the type of devil-may-care attitude we've come to expect
The awesome picture above comes from Miami, where the NFL’s elite have gathered for the pre-Super Bowl festivities. It’s also where our favorite rabble-rousing head coach, Rex Ryan, decided to take in a MMA Strikeforce event on Saturday night … where he was inevitably surrounded by Dolphins fans, eager to express their distaste their AFC Rival Jets. You can see where this is going.
Our friends at SportsByBrooks has the whole story, including video of the interview Rex gave over the jumbotron that might have ruffled some feathers in Miami. If you need even more coverage, The Miami Herald has the first-hand story from the photographer, along with Ryan’s clearly forced apology.
Does anyone else notice that Rex’s shirt says “Wide Guy” on it? Is this a brand for big & talls, or a cautionary sign for whenever he’s transported on the freeway?
22
Jan
2010
Rex Ryan Invited to Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest … IF Jets win
I mean, just look at that gullet! (Image via Boston.com)
Well this is just fantastic. Word from Deadspin is that Major League Eating is offering Rex Ryan a seat in the 2010 Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest … if the Jets beat the Colts this weekend. That’s right, if the Jets win, Rex will go stomach to stomach with the likes of Kobayashi and Joey Chestnut for global eating supremacy.
If I were the Colts I’d be worried right now. If Rex Ryan ever needed any more motivation to win on Sunday (more than, ya know, going to the Super Bowl), I’d say a tray filled with Nathan’s famous franks is probably his definition of heaven.
And if I were Kobayashi and Chestnut, I’d be worried too … it’s like they just invited Jabba the Hut to compete against them.
VIEW THE INVITATION FROM NATHAN’S AFTER THE JUMP
13
Jan
2010
Rex Ryan Really Rikes Revis as Defensive POY (video)
(sorry, but sometimes headline alliteration supersedes proper English)
(Image via NYJetsFan.com)
Yesterday, Packers DB Charles Woodson was named as the AP’s Defensive Player of the Year for 2009. And while Woodson had an excellent year with 9 INTs, the runner-up for the award was NY Jets CB Darrell Revis, who arguably had the most memorable season for a shutdown corner in recent years.
As you might have guessed, Jets HC Rex Ryan wasn’t too pleased that his best player was passed over for the award, and stated his case for Revis to the media:
Ryan makes some excellent points, but isn’t it just refreshing to have an NFL head coach who actually says what’s on his mind, and doesn’t turn every question into some coachspeak BS session?!? I mean, the guy clearly a clown, but it makes for some good entertainment!
18
Nov
2009
Rex Ryan pulls a Vermeil, cries after loss
(Original Photo: BostonHerald.com | Photoshop/hackjob by ArtieFufkin)
The NY Post reported yesterday that following the Jets 24-22 loss to the Jaguars on Sunday, head coach Rex Ryan broke down and cried during his post-game speech to the team.
“He didn’t bash us at all; he was just very emotional . . . he was crying,” right tackle Damien Woody told The Post. “Rex believes in our team so much I can’t even put it into words and it would be a shame if we didn’t capitalize on our opportunity.”
Now, emotion is nothing new for Rex. Since he entered the league, Ryan has been a walking sound byte, letting his passion get the better of him more than a few times. In fact, he apparently shed tears of joy after their the Jets’ season opening victory over Houston. But after 5 losses in the last 6 games, it seems to be taking a toll on the big man. Woody continued:
“I’ve seen him cry after we won the first game. That was emotional. This was different. He just showed you how much he cares about the team.”
Ryan’s moving moment took place as he was telling the players how much he still believes in them.
“He was talking about the situation — this upcoming game with New England and how we’re still there, how we still have a pulse,” Woody said. “He said it’s all about us, that nobody believes in us and that we are the only ones who believe we can get things done.
“He said, ‘I believe in you; I believe you get can get this thing done,’ and that’s when he really got emotional.”
Awwww … isn’t that just precious. I guess Ryan took a page out of Dick Vermeil’s coaching playbook. Next they’re going to draw masks representing their inner children, so they can break free from the emotional chains that are holding them back. Yeesh.
19
Sep
2009
Kerry Rhodes and Rodney Harrison: One, Two, Three, Four, I declare Twitter War!
With updates below.
Per Ohm Youngmisu of the New York Daily News, mouthy Jets safety Kerry Rhodes has ripped former Patriot Rodney Harrison via Twitter.
Screenshots from the Twitter pages of Schefter, Rhodes, and Harrison.
From Youngmisu’s story: “The former Patriots safety ripped Rhodes Friday for his comments to the Daily News earlier this week about wanting to “embarrass” the Patriots and hit Tom Brady often. Harrison also questioned the Jets safety’s toughness.
“I respect Kerry Rhodes as a playmaker but he’s not a tough guy,” Harrison, now an NBC analyst, said on Michael Kay’s radio show on ESPN-1050 Friday. “OK, I’ve seen him turn down tackles many a time. As far as him talking about them wanting to embarrass us, I can understand that. But let’s stay a little humble. Because when you start talking like that you really set yourself up to put all the pressure (on the Jets).”
On his verified Twitter account, Rhodes tweeted, “I’m detecting a lil jealousy from (Harrison) he must wish he was playing 2morrow. My talent outweighs his ask belichick.”
“You just beat Houston,” Harrison said in an amazed tone on the radio. “You beat Houston. Now all of a sudden, Mark Sanchez is Joe Namath and Rex Ryan is Buddy Ryan. He’s the best coach ever.”
Before the season began, the brash Ryan said he was not going to bow down to the Patriots and kiss Bill Belichick’s Super Bowl rings, which only intensified one of the NFL’s best rivalries.
Then this week Rhodes said that the Jets will try to rattle Brady and “hit him more than six times. I promise you that,” referring to the number of times the Bills knocked Brady around on Monday night. While Rhodes made it clear that the Jets won’t play dirty, he did say it is human nature for Brady to be thinking about his surgically repaired left knee. “If somebody is around his leg, or he feels pressure below, he’s not going to step into his throw,” Rhodes said.
* * *
UPDATE from TheDarkHorse: Looks like Rhodes and Harrison have been chatting via Twitter subsequent to this report from the NY Daily News. And getting ESPN’s Adam Schefter into the mix, too.
RHODES TO HARRISON:
I’m detecting a lil jealousy from @rodneyh37 he must wish he was playing 2morrow. My talent outweighs his ask belichick.
HARRISON TO RHODES:
@kerryrhodes Kerry, you talk big for someone who has yet to even win in the playoffs you think you will ever accomplish what i accomplished?
RHODES TO HARRISON:
@Rodneyh37 r u playing sunday? i respect ur game but u crossed line. and i never talk smack u started it. i kno u respect my game! Tweet it!
HARRISON TO RHODES:
@kerryrhodes I definitely respect your game on the field Kerry, but i didn’t appropriate what you said about the Patriots its disrespectful.
ADAM SCHEFTER to his Twitter followers:
Me? I’m guessing Belichick prefers a Pro-Bowl safety with championship rings rather than a Pro-Bowl-less one who tweets about himself.
RHODES TO ADAM SCHEFTER:
@Adam_Schefter yo man get it right he tweet me first about this i dont trash talk but i defend myself! so u get it right!
RHODES TO HARRISON:
@Rodneyh37 u being someone who played the game knows the media runs it i said we are gonna try to embarrass them! lol u should respect that
HARRISON TO RHODES:
@kerryrhodes And even though i respect your game, you do have flaws and i have seen you pass on tackles and not always been physical.
RHODES TO HARRISON:
@Rodneyh37 and i told u i respect ur game and u have flaws 2 lol. and so does ed reed! thats a given.
HARRISON TO RHODES:
@kerryrhodes The talk about Brady’s knees and promising to hit him more than 6 times is what hit a nerve did you ever come back from a surgery like that? no wonder you have no idea what kind of impact your words have for certain players who went through rehab.
RHODES TO HARRISON:
@Rodneyh37 see and thats my point i never ever said anything about hitting his knees! lol r u serious you know i dont play that way!
17
Sep
2009
Rex Ryan phone stalks Jets season ticket holders
Do you want this man calling you late at night?
If you’re a Jets season ticket holder, you’ve clearly had things pretty rough for a while. I mean, what with the whole 2nd-class team in the world’s largest sports market inferiority complex, and all. And every year, the Jets organization will do something to get the core fanbase fired up about their SB chances … only to shatter their hopes & dreams come December (Quick fact: the Jets haven’t advanced past the divisional round of the playoffs since 1982).
Well, this year is no different, Jets fans! With new head Coach Rex Ryan leading the way and 1st round draft pick Mark Sanchez in town, Gang Green is off to a blazing 1-0 start, and Jets nation is once again believing that this is their year. Ryan in particular has been stoking the flames, starting a war of words with every team in the AFC East, to cartoonish effect.
So, with the upcoming home clash against AFC East overlord New England Patriots, Ryan is putting out the call – literally – to Jets fans, asking them to bring the noise on Sunday. All season ticket holders received this this somewhat apathetic, fully self-deprecating voice mail from Ryan, in an attempt to fire up what he so eloquently refers to as the “13th or 14th man”:
I don’t know about you, but I could run through a brick wall right now!!! I mean, that got me CRAZED!
Seriously though, if you’re a Jets season ticket holder, I bet the idea of a phone call from the head coach of your favorite team sounds like a really cool thing, but what if this becomes a regular occurrence? What if the Jets tumble into a downward spiral after starting 1-4 (their next 3 games are against the Pats, Titans and Saints)? The NY media will turn on the Jets, and I can just envision drunken, mid-food binge, late night phone calls from Rex, ranting about how he’s not good enough to be an NFL head coach, and how dad was right all along.
J-E-T-S JETS JETS JETS!!!
19
Aug
2009
Wednesday Wrap: Shaq VS Big Ben, the new Sexy Rexy, and He Who Shall Remain Nameless
Rex Ryan continues to paw at the sleeping bear, taking ill-advised swipes at Bill Belichick
Well, we all know what the biggest news of the week is. And we’re still not talking about it. Eff that disingenuous prick … there’s sill an 60% chance he’s going to retire again anyway.
Here are your Wednesday Links!:
- The folks at Kissing Suzy Kolber adequately capture our feelings about the one we shall not name [KSK].
- Jets coach Rex Ryan just can’t seem to keep his big yapper shut [NJ.com]. At least he’s focusing the team’s energy on such important endeavors as the King Ugly competition. My money’s on big Rex himself.
- Ben Roethlisberger competed with Shaquille O’Neal in the premier of “Shaq VS” on ABC last night [LA Times], and I guess it was pretty entertaining. I liked watching Shaq go through combine drills with Mike Mayock, but it lost me down the stretch. Big Ben ended up winning the final event, and getting to wear one of Shaq’s championship rings as the prize. Watch it yourself on YouTube.
- On a completely unrelated-to-football note, does anyone else think the Foot Locker “Hyperizing” track from that commercial is really, really good? Video after the jump.
10
Jun
2009
Rex Ryan is as crazy as the ol’ man!
Like father, like son ... right down to the man-boobs and turkey neck
Remember how batshit crazy Buddy Ryan was? Remember when he would rip into Tom Landry, in an effort to stoke the flames of division rivalry? Remember when he was with the Houston Oilers and punched Kevin Gilbride – a member of his own coaching staff – in the face on the sidelines during a game (if not, video after the jump)?!? Well, it looks like the apple don’t fall too far from the turnip truck, if you know what I mean.
Rookie New York Jets Head Coach Rex Ryan is already stirring up trouble in the AFC East, and is deeply embroiled in a war of words with Dolphins LB Channing Crowder. It all started when Ryan made a seemingly innocuous statement that he wasn’t afraid of anyone in the division:
“I never came here to kiss Bill Belichick’s rings,” Ryan said in an interview on WFAN. “I came here to win, let’s put it that way…. I’m certainly not intimidated by New England or anybody else.”
And even though he didn’t mention anything specifically about the Dolphins, Crowder took offense to the fact that Ryan was calling out the Patriots, not Miami – the defending AFC East Champs – as the team to beat in the division.
Crowder fired back at Ryan:
“Oh he’s going crazy. He’s going absolutely nuts,” Crowder said. “I know it’s his first chance to be a head coach, and I know he’s excited about life. But I’ve never played a football game in June in my life. So congratulations to him. He’s the OTA Super Bowl winner.”
Zing!!!
Your play, Mr. Ryan:
“I don’t know this Channing Crowder. All I know is that he’s all tatted up, so I guess I ought to be nervous about him. If I was younger, I’d probably handle him myself.”
Alright! Now we’re approaching junior high school level!!
