Rex gets one pick per draft. Hallelujah that it wasn't the second round pick. His pick should be limited to 4th round or later. I don't know why everyone is making a big deal that Hill was not his pick. He clearly says that he, now knowing he was wrong, would like to claim it as his pick. Just Rex being Rex.
The problem with this article is that it reaffirms a few of the concerns that even some of the Jet fans who really like Rex (like me) obviously have: 1) He just can’t keep his mouth shut. No matter how many times it happens (and you would think he would learn by now) Rex can’t stop himself from saying things that put him in the limelight and will be “twisted” negatively. If he doesn’t think that something like his quotes would cause a problem then he is extremely naïve. Maybe he just can’t help himself or maybe he doesn’t think before he speaks. Either way it doesn’t bode well. Rex is great that likes to speak his mind and that’s why a lot of fans love him. However, it seems that he doesn’t know when not to cross the line. As an example (from previous quotes): “I never came here to kiss Belichick’s rings” -> Great, no problem whatsoever – Most Jets and Jets fans loved his brashness “Well, I think I would have had a couple of rings” (When talking about the San Diego Chargers job) -> While an inadvertent comment and I don’t think Rex purposely took a shot at Norv Turner it was obviously unnecessary and way blow below the belt. You don’t call out another coach in public. 2) He cares too much about defense and not enough about offense. When he says “but honestly, when it came down to it, a wideout? Not my dream pick.” It reminds me that he cares overly about the defensive side of the ball at the detriment to the offense. Why wouldn’t a wideout be a “dream pick”? Whether you believe Hill is that guy or not it was obvious that the Jets needed an explosive option to this offense. To not be able to acknowledge this could be a huge issue. This is 2012 not 1962. You cannot be successful even with the best defense in the world if you can’t chuck the ball down the field. If Rex wants to be a great HEAD coach then he has to increase his “effectiveness” on both sides of the ball. If he can’t do that then the Jets will not reach their full potential. When he makes the same “mistakes” over and over again it shows that he’s not really learning. There is a difference between speaking your mind and being honest to a fault. Why does he have to continuously cause "distractions"? There is no reason to air this scenario that he described (where he was against the pick) now at the beginning of the regular season. If he wanted to talk about this is (and I wouldn’t have gone through all of the details in any case), it would have been after the year when Hill has 800+ yards and 8 TD’s – not now. What positive purpose does it serve now? Does Rex just like to hear himself talk?
What I don't get is why anyone WOULD expect Rex Ryan, one of the greatest defensive minds in football, to have an ego about his ability in the area of wide receiver talent evaluation, much less that it is actually something at which he would excel.
Thanks for this - I cant believe we have to put up with slanted negative nonsense that I expect from ESPN etc even on a jets forum. SMH
so what? With all due respect, your concerns have zero impact upon the CS, the Team or the FO. If you wish to parce every comment and misinterpret things in order to cast Rex's comments in as negative a light as possible - thats up to you. But pretending that your concerns matter to beating the crap out of the Bills is really pretty delusional on your part.
The problem with this approach is that there is so little room for error when you are so defensively focussed. How long have the Ravens had a great defense and how many times have they been the SB? The moment that Rex became a head coach his goal should not have been to build the best defense, but to build the best team. This article does very little to build my confidence that Rex understands this concept. A WR that could catch the long ball (and presumably draw coverage away from the line of scrimmage if successful) is just what the Jet offense needed. You can't build the G&P (I really hate that term in this day and age) if you don't make the defense fear the long ball.
You are acting like there are only 2 possibilities for Rex. Tell the complete and honest truth, or lie about it and make everything seem great. Why is there no middle ground? The issue comes up frequently that he either simply doesn't know how or refuses to say something like "Man I didn't want to draft Stephen Hill at first but I changed my mind and now I sure am glad we have him." I don't see what is so hard about that. And I guess we differ in that if Hill turns out to be a bust and the media and fans blame Tannenbaum and the FO for the bad pick, you don't think there are any real repercussions from that. Do you think the FO doesn't care that people would never have had any idea whose mistake it was but because Rex couldn't shut his mouth that everybody in the world knows? Getting slammed for it by ESPN and NFL Network, stations that have such a grip on fan perception, is not something that is meaningless just because you say it is. You can think that. But I don't think you can honestly say people are being ridiculous for thinking otherwise.
My goal is not to parce every comment. Far from it. As I stated, a lot of the things that Rex gets burned for I have no problem with. However, to ignore the stuff that he says that are ill-advised because he very often gets crapped on needlessly is no excuse. While my concerns are not important to how the Jets play, perhaps (just maybe) Hill finding out that Rex didn't want him at that slot isn't the best case scenario. In a time where you talk about unity and team why show to the world that not everyone was behind the pick (at that time). And if we can't posts our thoughts and concers about the Jets here what are we supposed to talk about - our favorite color?
This is a HUGE assumption you are making. Hill is a professional who knows very clearly that his college experience was limited. In fact he CHOSE to come out early despite being told directly by the NFL advisory board that "he had no chance of being drafted in the first three rounds" Moreover you hilariously assume that Hill is somehow not aware that Rex wouldn't have taken him - hell Rex probably uses that to challenge the young man all the time. Lastly you assume that Hill is a complete pussy who suddenly will go cry to mommy and refuse to play ball when he is challenged - I think it has quite the opposite effect - and obviously so does Rex which is exactly why he has no problem w/Hill knowing all about it - Go Out And Prove Me Wrong Young Man. Your assumption that Hill will curl up in the fetal position and cry - is totally absurd. Of course not everyone was behind the pick. Its the NYJ war room. Do you seriously think that every single person agrees on every single pick??? Maybe on your fantasy team that happens, but in the real world there are things called draft boards and scouts, coaches and GMs w/differing opinions. Having a draft war room has no impact on team unity. I didn't say that you couldn't post your thoughts and concerns. Feel free. Just don't presume that somehow your concerns have any impact whatsoever in terms of whether the Jets play great football and win games. You're perceptions of what is worth being concerned about is shaped by the media. Most likely we have absolutely no idea what is really going on, what Rex has been discussing w/Hill for months, what Hill & Rex's relationship is like, whether Hill has known from Day 1 that he needed to keep impressing Rex. Etc etc. etc.
My guess is that Rex wanted them to draft an outside linebacker, or maybe a safety, in Round 2. The one criticism that appears valid is that Rex does seem to be a little too consumed with the defense, at the expense of the offense.
because only negativity is allowed around here! Seriously though I thought it was a really nice thing to say about Hill. He was honest and said I wasn't sold on you but since you've been here I have been very impressed. Even joked and said he's going to try and take credit for picking him now. I'm sure Hill was very happy to hear it.
1) Why would it be hilarious for me to assume that Rex didn't tell Hill how he felt? If I was someone's coach and I wasn't in favor of a pick I don't think I would tell the player of my thoughts. Maybe you would. Great. Hilarious is hardly a term I would use. If I was hired by a manager because his boss told him to do it I wouldn't want to know it before I started. I certainly wouldn't want anyone else to know. Also, where did I assume Hill is a complete pussy? Didn't you see words perhaps and maybe? No offense, but you seem to be the one putting a lot of words in other people's mouth. 2) Again I don't think that everyone is united on every pick. However, there is no positive in showing internal issues to the public real time. It's about perception. 3) I didn't know that my concerns had no impact on the Jets. Thanks for enlightening me. (Sarcasm alert). Lastly it is you that assume when you say that my concerns are shaped by the media. I am not local to NY anymore and I don't read articles on the Jets unless they are brought up in this forum. And when the Jets topic comes on national TV I usually turn the channel. My concerns are based on what I see. You may not agree with them, but that doesn't meam that my issues are brought about by the media.
Hill only caught like 5 balls in his entire college career so the 'film' on Hill is only about 11 seconds long. Sneeze and you miss it.
It's not like Rex said this shit just yesterday.. I love the Jets defense and it should keep them in most games. But New York seems to think it has enough playmakers on offense and I just don't see it. In training camp, when I asked him how he knew rookie second-round receiver Stephen Hill was ready to contribute early, Ryan gave me a very honest, but curious answer. "Well, nothing told me he would (contribute),'' Ryan said. "Nothing. When I saw the tape (of his collegiate play) I was concerned. But (Jets general manager) Mike Tannenbaum and (senior personnel executive) Terry Brady and all our scouts were adamant about this guy. They were adamant that this guy can do it. He can run all these routes, he had good hands and he's got 4.2 speed at 6-foot-5. He was the guy they all wanted, but honestly, when it came down to it, a wideout? Not my dream pick. But now that we have him, of course, I want to claim him: 'Oh, that was my pick.' But it really wasn't.'' Wonder what Ryan thinks of his rookie receiver now? Hill led New York's receivers this preseason with nine catches for 106 yards, but he also had at least three drops, including one that turned into a Carolina interception in last Sunday night's Jets loss to the Panthers. New York finished 0-4 in the preseason for the first time since 1993, and this is clearly a team that hasn't yet figured out its offensive identity.
and there is no negative, either, without you projecting your unfounded opinions onto player's emotional stability and relationships amongst the parties being discussed. and at that point you aren't talking about the actual parties anymore, but your made up versions of them. this is a site to discuss the actual Jets, not our fictional versions of the Jets. otherwise we may as well talk about the 10 time defending Super Bowl champs I would like them to be.
He feels there is no positive, you feel there is no negative. Because he feels there is no positive, his opinions are unfounded, where say, yours are founded? How is that? Unless you are saying the only negative is him actually expressing his opinion? If so, that differs from you disputing his, how?
If you read the whole thing, Rex affirms that he would like to take credit for the pick now, that from what he sees of Hill it was a great pick. He's being tongue-in-cheek about how he's not always right. And when he said "nothing to contribute," I took it to mean he didn't see them taking a receiver, that he thought the receivers they had were as good.
