Jets coach Ryan emerges as entertaining quote machine

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (AP) — Rex Ryan has been called lots of things in his first season as the New York Jets coach, and it’s hard to argue with any of them.

Funny. Outrageous. Brash. Cocky. Confident.

Call him whatever you want, but one thing’s for sure: Ryan has been consistently entertaining.

He speaks his mind, whether you like it or not, and apologizes for nothing. And, the more the Jets win, the more attention Ryan’s words get.

“I just build our guys up,” Ryan said. “If it’s trash talking that I believe in our football team, then, yes, I agree with that statement. I’m the biggest trash talker there is. I don’t disrespect anybody else. I just have confidence in our football team. I don’t mean to be disrespectful at all to opponents.”

Ryan has been a quote machine, providing a humorous soundtrack to what has become a wild season for the Jets. His daily news conferences are must-hear events because it seems you’re left shaking your head at least once a week and asking, “Did you hear what Rex said this time?”

Some fans, mainly of Jets opponents, and members of the media think Ryan yaps a bit too much. To a man, though, Ryan’s players love his “I’m just going to be me” approach.

“I don’t think it is trash talking,” right tackle Damien Woody said. “It’s confidence that he has in his team. He believes in us. If he doesn’t believe in us, who will? He goes against the grain. Rex tries to build you up, make you feel like you can do anything.”

That certainly has been the case for the past several weeks, as the surging Jets have won six of their last seven and head to San Diego for a playoff game Sunday. Last week, Ryan created a postseason itinerary for his players that included the Super Bowl in Miami — and the subsequent victory parade on Feb. 9.

Bold? Yep, but certainly not unexpected. Ryan’s not going to change now, not when — as he pointed out a few times this week — his team is three wins from a championship.

“If a team wants to use it as motivation that I really believe in our football team,” Ryan said, “then that’s fine.”

When Ryan was hired last January, he took over a team that was, by many accounts, uptight and lacking an identity. He fixed all that the first time he opened his mouth, declaring at his introductory news conference that the Jets would meet President Obama someday as Super Bowl champions.

Eyes widened and jaws dropped, and Ryan was just getting started.

He said his team would be the most physical in the league and opponents wouldn’t want to ever play them because if they took “a swipe at one of ours, we’ll take a swipe at two of yours.”

“He comes out and says, ‘We’re going to win this,’ or ‘We’re going to win that,”’ center Nick Mangold said, “and you want to work that much harder to prove him right.”