“The reason I think I’m going to get it is because I’m the best guy for it.”
Rex Ryan is not only convinced that he’s going to become the next New York Jets head coach, but he’s fully confident that he can reign in quarterback Aaron Rodgers next season.
The former coach and current ESPN analyst said on ESPN New York radio on Monday that he would shut down the “country club” and keep Rodgers in line. Among other things, Ryan slammed both Rodgers and the Jets for his unexcused absence from the team’s mandatory minicamp last summer.
“Clearly, when you have a guy that doesn’t show up for mandatory minicamp — and, by the way, he’s your quarterback, coming off an injury — I think that’s an absolutely ridiculous message you send to the team,” Ryan said on the DiPetro & Rothenberg Show.
“If he comes back, things would be different. If he’s back, it ain’t gonna be the country club, show up whenever the hell you want to show up. That ain’t gonna happen. I’ll just leave it at that.”
Rodgers is undecided on his future with the organization after leading the team to just a 5-12 record this season, essentially his first after he injured his Achilles on just the fourth play of his debut with the team last year. He has reportedly been quietly pushing for another season in New York, though the Jets don’t seem as thrilled about that idea.
The 41-year-old missed minicamp last June in order to take a trip to Egypt, which he called a scheduling mix-up. The team fined him for the absence, but didn’t seem to mind much in the grand scheme of things. It marked just the latest off-field incident that Rodgers has found himself in recent years.
Rodgers threw for 3,897 yards with 28 touchdowns and 11 interceptions this season, his 20th in the league. He surpassed the 500-touchdown mark on Sunday, too, which made him one of just five quarterbacks in league history to do so.
Is Rex Ryan the man for the Jets job?
The Jets are currently interviewing candidates to replace Robert Saleh as their next head coach. Ryan said he will meet with the organization on Tuesday in South Florida.
The team requested to interview former Miami Dolphins head coach and current Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores on Monday. The team also reportedly plans to interview Josh McCown, Joe Brady, Aaron Glenn, Brian Griese, Vance Joseph, Matt Nagy, Ron RIvera, Bobby Slowik, Arthur Smith and Mike Vrabel.
While that’s a big field of candidates, Ryan is openly confident that he’s the man for the job. He spent six seasons leading the team from 1009-2014, where he compiled a 46-50 record. The 62-year-old led the team to the AFC Championship game in back-to-back years during his run, which was the last time they reached the playoffs. He was fired by owner Woody Johnson in 2014.
“The reason I think I’m going to get it is because I’m the best guy for it. It ain’t close,” Ryan said, via ESPN. “The thing you have to do is, you have to connect with your football team, you have to connect with your fan base. The way they play, that’s the most important thing.
“It’s not just the X’s and O’s and all that. This [Lions offensive coordinator] Ben Johnson, I love him, I absolutely love him, but I’m a better candidate for this job than he would be.”
