I meant everything I said. Any NFL coach stupid enough to tell the public the way to beat a team (that isn't blindingly obvious, like "we have to stop Brady and Welker") isn't going to be a coach for very long, so no, I wouldn't take a word of it seriously. And I absolutely do think that Sanchez sees it the same way, so he doesn't take it seriously either (a point he made explicitly about the "benching" he got in practice last week). This is not college - this is the NFL. Anyone who doesn't say or do whatever he thinks it takes to win (within the rules, of course, and hopefully without being needlessly cruel or physically abusive) is a fool, and anyone who doesn't recognize that (be they player or fan) is IMO also one. There's a big difference in my mind between "being a liar" (with the implication that you never tell the truth) and saying what is necessary to help your team win (which might end up meaning saying things you don't really believe). The only credibility that matters is the credibility Ryan has with his players, and if that is only coming from his blowhard personality the Jets have much bigger problems than some pointless article in the Post.
Only thing I dont agree with here is that Lowery somehow didn't fit in the Jets plans. Im disagreeing more with the decision to let him walk with Eric Smith taking over, then with your assessment. It was a horrible choice IMO. Maybe I'm biased. I hate Eric Smith inability to cover and love Dwight Lowery's playmaking ability.
Ftr I WAS thinking about something like your example, like "we need to get our running game going" - actually in certain contexts even something that bland and general can tell you something without giving too much away to the opposition, but my main point is that having a complete disregard for the truth when talking to the fans and media is not necessary in order to do what's necessary to win. To take example of Sanchez this past off season, if Ryan had said "I love having Mark as our Qb and expect great things from him this year" no one would be saying anything today coming from that article. But in hindsight, saying something as concrete as "Sanchez has made great strides from last year" - Sanchez knew at the time he said that whether that was generally true or not. It obviously was not, so what did Ryan accomplish by saying it? ON the face of it, nothing, since Sanchez in fact has been mediocre. As you said yourself " I absolutely do think that Sanchez sees it the same way, so he doesn't take it seriously either" - so how did that help the team? Sanchez or any other player will get nothing more out of a coach saying something about them that is way too complimentary other than that the coach is either lying or can't assess football talent. If the later I suppose it might mean you might not get cut or benched sooner than later, but that's about it. In short my main point is I see no significant dichotomy between generally telling the truth and helping one's team. Yes, in given instances there will be a conflict, to be sure. But generally, or all the time, as you suggested? I dont think so. The irony is so much of what was initially appealing about Ryan was people used terms like "genuine" "says what he thinks" "refreshing" "unafraid". Today? Not so much. Today I have the Jets Post Game show ringing in my ears that Ryan's compliments are either bs or show he is delusional.
Agreed. Unfortunately, to some degree I believe he and Tanny thought for sure that the talent level on this team was greater than it actually is.
Tony is reality Damien Woody was awful last year. He aged right before our eyes. Hunter played well in his absence last year. This year Hunter tailed off early but Moore was not 100 per cent either earlier. They seem to be coming on strong at this time. Maybin statistacally is one of the better rushers presently based on his stats. He sure is our best passrusher in quite awhile. Where we are hurting is the safety positions! OLB is also a big question mark. The quality of play from our QB also is a current problem. Our featured RB also has had problems being the best he can be. We are not as good as last year but its not all on Hunter or Burress. I think our coaching has some kinks that need to be corrected.
Agreed. Its unfortunate but he is the guy who allowed the team to come out FLAT at Pittsburgh last year for the Championship game. We have not been the same since. If Herm Edwards allowed the team to come out as flat as they did, the world would have heard us Jets fans yelling all over the place. just saying like it is.
I think most of us expected to beat the bengals in 09 after the Jets got in but can anyone really say that they had more confidence in that team than this current team with a straight face? 09 I had plenty of hope going into the playoffs but I don't see how anyone could have been confident with a Rookie QB leading a team had been 4-6 at one point. I also don't know how far off Rex really was at the time. The team is frustrating to watch but they are still in line to have the same record as last year. If mangold doesn't get hurt we could be talking about 12 or 13 wins right now instead of winning out to get o 11-5. The mangold injury is just the most major one as we are also missing BT and Rob Turner who would have Played a pretty big role this year with our offensive line issues.
Rex's biggest problem is that he doesn't have the balls to get rid of Schottenheimer. Brian will be his downfall.
Rex refusal to take ownership for the offense is pretty aggravating. the old adage is "your either coaching it, or letting it happen" hes letting the coaching happen which is even worse. sometimes its like watching someone smile while eating a shit pie. even funnier are people who will defend him "your not at the facility to know what goes on" i would say touche, but Rex Ryan doesnt stfu about anything, except the offense and coddling mark sanchez. The ultimate conundrum is, I see Schotty as a middle of the road guy. Then again constant moving pieces and an erratic Sanchez make it even harder to evaluate. If your changing OC's a definite upgrade needs to be made, and I'm not 100 percent sure where that answer is. Cue the Callahan bandwagon (love him as an OL Coach but I also know him as the guy who rode Grudens team to the SB only to get spanked when he didnt change Grudens system. oh and his nosedive at Nebraska)
This article will benefit us. Rex will stand in front of the team and do his us vs them talk. It usually works for him. The unfortunate thing is that Rex needs this kind of motivation before he can rally the troop. I just wish he did not constantly need his back against the wall to deliver. But it just seems like he can't embrace success.
Umm...refer to Cashman's modus operandi and just say ' we have a lot of hard work yet to do if we want to reach our SB goal.' It might be that Ryan's strategy was to set high expectations to motivate average talent. It may have worked if Sanchez isn't just a below average QB. The question is does the FO cut their 'all in' bet on Sanchez if the Jets either don't make the postseason or are one and done with a bad loss. Ryan has lost his credibility with a lot of fans if the Jets try the SOS roster in 2012.
Looking ahead to the off season and what will be done with the roster raises some very interesting questions, but imo, as much as I am tempted to go there, it's too early with too much that might happen between now and the end of the season still up in the air. And even if one uses the same assumptions you are making, there is merit as Kenny said above, to the argument that Mangold's injury with Turner already out was a huge hit on the Jets' chances this year. Neither of which Ryan can be blamed for, the failure to adequately replace Turner I think mostly falling on Tanny. But... yeah, modifying your scenario, if the Jets fall well short of making the playoffs, I will be tempted enough by your post to agree that a mostly let it slide approach to the roster would draw a lot of criticism. A lot. And Ryan's cred were he to take a mostly unchanged roster into next year and predict world domination would be in negative numbers.
Honestly..I think this assessment is dead on. The proof is in the pudding. 8 and 7 and on the verge of not making the playoffs. I remember a thread I answered at the beginning of the season about how many games did I think the Jets were going to win? I think O said they would barely win eight games. I'm not happy that I might be right..but.... Talent-wise this team is just ok. Mangold..Ferguson and Revis..those are the stars. The rest in my eyes...they can be replaced. It's just my opinion. My hope is that Woody Johnson get a little Steinbrenner in him and decide he wants to win a championship. Get rid of Tannenbaum and find someone who knows personnel.