Don’t tell Rex Ryan that the New York Jets appear to be fading down the stretch. After two straight defeats, Ryan is realistic about his team needing to improve if they want to accomplish the goals they set for themselves at the outset of the year, but Ryan truly believes his team will get things straightened out and quickly. Whether or not his unwavering faith is well-grounded remains to be seen, but you can definitely hear it in his voice when he says he believes the Jets will.
Listen for yourself. On Monday, Ryan joined Michael Kay for his weekly appearance on ESPN Radio in New York. During the lengthy chat, Ryan talked about the poor play of Mark Sanchez in recent weeks, how he thought about benching Sanchez but ultimately otherwise, the unfortunate tripping incident involving Jets’ strength coach Sal Alosi, and other topics ranging from Damien Woody’s health to LaDainian Tomlinson’s decline in productivity. (Full transcript via: SRI)
On if any doubt has started to set in after the Jets’ two recent losses:
“No there’s no doubt. I feel great about our team, and the reason I say that is because when you watch the tape, there’s things that are correctable, and a lot of things. That’s why I feel that we just got to get a big win. I think if we can get a big win that will catapult us into doing what we can do. So I’m encouraged that I really believe we can get better.”
On why he chose to publicly stated that he considered benching Mark Sanchez:
“Well, I mean, it’s an honest answer. I wouldn’t be myself if I didn’t answer it that way. I felt like everybody else I’m sure that we need a spark, we need to do something differently. And when I thought about it, I thought no, that’s not the right thing to do because Mark is our quarterback, and this young man has led us back in four games this year when we trailed in the fourth quarter. So I thought he gave us the best chance. But did the thought cross my mind? Yes, yes it did.”
On if he regrets all the bold talking if it seemingly makes other teams more motivated to beat the Jets:
“No, here’s one thing: I don’t think I’ve ever said a negative word about an opponent. I talk about my team. I believe my football team is an outstanding team, I think we have a lot of talent, I think we’re well coached, I think we have a great organization. And that’s never going to change, because I believe it, that’s what I’m a part of, but I’ve never said a bad remark about an opposing team. I’m going to be myself, I believe in this group, even they’re going to to be some people who want to jump off the bandwagon and all that, I think we’ll get it done. I think we’ll get it done this year, and the year’s not over. So we’ll see when it’s all said and done. I opened myself up for criticism and all that kind of stuff, and if we don’t succeed, it’s going to fall on one person, and that’s me, and that’s who it should fall on.”