Rex Ryan on Bills: 'Teams aren't going to want to play us'

[Strongman]

NEW YORK -- The Buffalo Bills haven't reached the playoffs since 1999, the longest drought in the NFL.

That is sure to end this season, according to Rex Ryan.

Rex's History of Bold Talk


Never shy behind the microphone, Rex Ryan was at it again Wednesday night, saying he believes the Bills will make the playoffs this season. Here's a look at some of his other bold proclamations. Story
"I think we'll be in [the playoffs] this year," the Bills' first-year coach said Wednesday night before playing in a charity softball event at Yankee Stadium. "So we'll see."

The playoffs? The Bills?

"I think we will," Ryan said matter-of-factly. "Yep, I think we will."

The former Jets coach, back in New York City for only the second time since being hired by the Bills, displayed his old bravado while speaking to a group of reporters on an outdoor terrace at the stadium.

Bills Own Longest Playoff Drought

If the Bills prove Rex Ryan right and make the playoffs in 2015, they will end the NFL's longest active playoff drought and the longest in team history.

Ryan was a fan favorite during his six seasons with the Jets, once guaranteeing a Super Bowl appearance -- in February, no less. He was fired after missing the playoffs for the fourth straight year.

This time, he didn't want to go as far as guaranteeing a postseason berth.

"I can guarantee you one thing: Teams aren't going to want to play us, I can tell you that much," he said. "You'll see.

"Hey, come watch practice, and you'll probably come away with the same feeling I have. We're loaded on defense and we're loaded at the skill positions. So we'll see."

Ryan inherited a 9-7 team that boasted the fourth-ranked defense. He added playmakers such as running back LeSean McCoy, tight end Charles Clay and receiver Percy Harvin.

He acknowledged that the quarterback situation is "not an ideal situation or there already would be one guy there. But we have enough talent there so that, when it's all said and done, we'll be fine."

More: http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/13008006/loaded-buffalo-bills-likely-playoff-team-rex-ryan-says

[OpIv37]

I'm pretty sure no one wanted to play us last year. Not that we were that good, but the D was great and capable of keeping us in every game.

[Buckets]

I'm pretty sure no one wanted to play us last year. Not that we were that good, but the D was great and capable of keeping us in every game.

:faint:

[Strongman]

Given the talent level of this team, I do think playoffs are a real possibility. We aren't getting to the Super Bowl though without a QB.

[The King]

I think those quotes are from his opening presser, no?

[Bill Cody]

I think those quotes are from his opening presser, no?

Hard to know. You could cut and paste it from like 100 pressers when he was with the Jets.

[better days]

I think those quotes are from his opening presser, no?

No. Rex went to a Charity Softball game at Yankee Stadium Wednesday night after practice ended.

This is from a PC at that game.

[SpikedLemonade]

Rex thinks we will make the play-offs this year (I hope he is right), but unlike when he was with the Jets, he will not guarantee the Bills will make the play-offs.

A sign of evolving maturity or a lack of confidence in the Bills?

[feldspar]

The Buffalo Bills haven't reached the playoffs since 1999, the longest drought in the NFL.

I just don't want to hear this ever again.

Is that too much to ask?

[Meathead]

id like to see rex cool it with the empty bluster. i dont really see how it helps tbh. makes the players feel good probably but does it really contribute anything of substance. seems like hes at risk of adding fuel to the opponents fire as much as ours

[The Jokeman]

I'm pretty sure no one wanted to play us last year. Not that we were that good, but the D was great and capable of keeping us in every game.

Wait that almost sounded like a positive comment, who are you and what have you done with Op?

[Strongman]

id like to see rex cool it with the empty bluster. i dont really see how it helps tbh. makes the players feel good probably but does it really contribute anything of substance. seems like hes at risk of adding fuel to the opponents fire as much as ours

I don't see it as bluster. I think he was very-matter-of-fact in saying playoffs are within this team's reach. I'm sure other NFL teams think the same thing when they look at our roster.

[Meathead]

i guess it sells a lot of tix too

[YardRat]

We all know Rex can talk the talk. It remains to be seen if can get back to the walk to accompany it, like the first two seasons in NY, or if he'll keep limping along, like the last four.

[BillsImpossible]

id like to see rex cool it with the empty bluster. i dont really see how it helps tbh. makes the players feel good probably but does it really contribute anything of substance. seems like hes at risk of adding fuel to the opponents fire as much as ours

Empty bluster? Come on, Meat.

Rex was asked a question by the viral New York press, and he said yes, the Bills will make the playoffs in his usual confident way without hesitation.

Imagine if Gregg Williams, Mike Mularkey, Dick Jauron, or Chan Gailey were in Rex's shoes.

What do you think they would say?

They wouldn't have the coconuts to say it.

[CleveSteve]

id like to see rex cool it with the empty bluster.

:chuckle:

[Mace]

Teams don't want to face me either. I keep challenging them and none will take the field against me. I've personally challenged Ryan to a game of 1-on-anyone-he has and he walked away from me and called security.

He's bluffing.

[justasportsfan]

With Rexy and Shady alone, we should call ourselves the Blabbering Bills.

They need to just shut their mouth .

[swiper]

Put up or shut up Rex.

Show it on the field.

[better days]

Put up or shut up Rex.

Show it on the field.

The media would HATE it if Rex were to shut up.

Rex is just answering questions asked of him by the media.

And for me, I LOVE the confidence Rex exudes.

I have had more than enough of the Jauron "it's hard to win in the NFL".

[swiper]

Tom Landry had class.

Rex not so much.

You can win without the empty-minded blathering.

[justasportsfan]

The media would HATE it if Rex were to shut up.

Rex is just answering questions asked of him by the media.

And for me, I LOVE the confidence Rex exudes.

I have had more than enough of the Jauron "it's hard to win in the NFL".
Don't care what media thinks. I don't fall for what he says. He couldn't cash in what his mouth said and he just came off a season where his team got owned by the Marrone coached bills. He inherited this team. Until he starts proving things with the bills, he needs to shut up. His confidence didn't win him gamesgames last year

[better days]

Tom Landry had class.

Rex not so much.

You can win without the empty-minded blathering.


Tom Landry coached a long time ago.

The media today demands much more than Landry ever delivered in regards to them.

Rex is his own man, maybe you don't like him, but MANY players do.

And there are players on the Bills that are Bills because of Rex.

The Bills are a better team than they were because of Rex & that is a fact.

[better days]

Don't care what media thinks. I don't fall for what he says. He couldn't cash in what his mouth said and he just came off a season where his team got owned by the Marrone coached bills. He inherited this team. Until he starts proving things with the bills, he needs to shut up. His confidence didn't win him gamesgames last year

It is similar to when Gruden became Coach of the Bucs.

Yes, Gruden inherited a good Bucs team, but he IMPROVED it.

The Bucs would have never gone to the Super bowl with Dungy as HC.

And, Rex has improved this Bills team.

Incognito, Shady, Harvin are all Bills because of Rex & they will help the team win.

[swiper]

Tom Landry coached a long time ago.

The media today demands much more than Landry ever delivered in regards to them.

Rex is his own man, maybe you don't like him, but MANY players do.

And there are players on the Bills that are Bills because of Rex.

The Bills are a better team than they were because of Rex & that is a fact.

Vince Lombardi inspired players.

Rex, again, not so much.

He's not his own man. He's a knock-off of his old man - who was a blowhard idiot too.

The only players here because of him are a couple of middling guys that played for him who would have trouble finding a job elsewhere. Unless you wana talk about Percy Harvin - who did nothing as a Jet. Nothing. And brings a whole other set of problems to a team - the Super Bowl champs threw him out with the trash.

So truth be told - there is no one in Buffalo because of Rex. There may be guys toeing the company line and saying the right things because they feel they have to, but you have to see it for what it is: Rex Ryan is an blowhard full of empty-promises.

[swiper]

And, you may hate Doug Marrone, but he was the only head coach that could get to 9 wins in how long?

THAT is putting your money where your mouth is.

Ryan will get his chance, but when he falls short I will laugh, and laugh, and laugh. And be resplendent in telling you how I told you so.

[justasportsfan]

It is similar to when Gruden became Coach of the Bucs.

Yes, Gruden inherited a good Bucs team, but he IMPROVED it.

The Bucs would have never gone to the Super bowl with Dungy as HC.

And, Rex has improved this Bills team.

Incognito, Shady, Harvin are all Bills because of Rex & they will help the team win.

I hope you are right my homer friend, but Rexy is no Gruden. Rexy couldnt even outsmart Marronre.

Rexy couldn't take his own jets team that went to the Afce and improve them and win the SB like said they would.

Rex said he wasn't there to kiss BB rings but most of the time he did.

That's my problem with Rex, hes a loudmouth .

[Mace]

Basically Rex is talking the talk and needs to walk the walk. I'm not worried about it the first year when he psyches everyone up like crazy to play like mad for him. If he gets success it feeds on itself, if not it gets old fast.

I didn't think it was the best hire, but hey, give the man his roll and let us see where it goes. We'll know soon enough.

[YardRat]

It is similar to when Gruden became Coach of the Bucs.

Yes, Gruden inherited a good Bucs team, but he IMPROVED it.

The Bucs would have never gone to the Super bowl with Dungy as HC.

And, Rex has improved this Bills team.

Incognito, Shady, Harvin are all Bills because of Rex & they will help the team win.

Very similar, and yet ownership didn't take the same approach. Gruden didn't mess with a dominant defense, and addressed the issues that needed to be addressed...offense .

[better days]

And, you may hate Doug Marrone, but he was the only head coach that could get to 9 wins in how long?

THAT is putting your money where your mouth is.

Ryan will get his chance, but when he falls short I will laugh, and laugh, and laugh. And be resplendent in telling you how I told you so.

The Bills got 9 wins on the strength of Schwartz's defense which Marrone had nothing to do with, along with the Pats* playing their scrubs the last game.

Despite HORRIBLE OL play, Marrone did not start Urbik until game 9 for Gods sake. Marrone will NEVER be a HC in the NFL again.

And when the Bills make the playoffs this year, I will laugh my ass off at you.

[better days]

Very similar, and yet ownership didn't take the same approach. Gruden didn't mess with a dominant defense, and addressed the issues that needed to be addressed...offense .

True. The Bucs were fortunate to get a former Offensive minded HC that almost took his team all the way the year before they got him.

There were no such HC's available to the Bills except maybe Jim Harbaugh. The Bills got his OC instead.

I guess we will see how he does, but the Bills have retooled the Offensive roster as much as the Bucs did, maybe more.

[swiper]

The Bills got 9 wins on the strength of Schwartz's defense which Marrone had nothing to do with, along with the Pats* playing their scrubs the last game.

Despite HORRIBLE OL play, Marrone did not start Urbik until game 9 for Gods sake. Marrone will NEVER be a HC in the NFL again.

And when the Bills make the playoffs this year, I will laugh my ass off at you.

Well there is no arguing about the Pats game, but he took a team with 8 wins into that game - so he does get credit.

And I agree with Urbik too.

Schwartz would have made a better head coach than Ryan in Buffalo.

We'll see who's laughing at who. But I'm not concerned about it.

The fact is that there are pieces in place, but they have to execute. The Bills have shaky QBing again. It all depends on play at that position.

If they did make the play-offs I would be as happy as anyone. But it's far more likely this year's team takes a step backwards.

Schwartz > Ryan at running defenses. And would be a better coach. You'll see.

[swiper]

There were other things Marrone did too, that wreaked.

He put Robert Woods into his doghouse for some reason. That is one of the most unheralded players on the team IMO.

[better days]

Well there is no arguing about the Pats game, but he took a team with 8 wins into that game - so he does get credit.

And I agree with Urbik too.

Schwartz would have made a better head coach than Ryan in Buffalo.

We'll see who's laughing at who. But I'm not concerned about it.

The fact is that there are pieces in place, but they have to execute. The Bills have shaky QBing again. It all depends on play at that position.

If they did make the play-offs I would be as happy as anyone. But it's far more likely this year's team takes a step backwards.

Schwartz > Ryan at running defenses. And would be a better coach. You'll see.

I would have been happy with Schwartz as a HC if he brought in a GOOD OC.

But Rex has a much better record as a HC than Schwartz.

And Rex's defense has never finished worse than eleventh with some terrible players on the Jets.

And other than that one year, Rex's defense has never finished out of the top 10.

With the players on the Bills, I expect the Bills defense to finish in the top 5. And the Bills to make the playoffs.

[better days]

There were other things Marrone did too, that wreaked.

He put Robert Woods into his doghouse for some reason. That is one of the most unheralded players on the team IMO.

Mike Williams, Urbik, and Goodwin also landed in Marrone's dog house for some reason.

[YardRat]

True. The Bucs were fortunate to get a former Offensive minded HC that almost took his team all the way the year before they got him.

There were no such HC's available to the Bills except maybe Jim Harbaugh. The Bills got his OC instead.

I guess we will see how he does, but the Bills have retooled the Offensive roster as much as the Bucs did, maybe more.

Maybe they didn't take their team 'almost all the way', but A)there were plenty of offensive-minded head coaches available (Kubiak, Trestman, Jackson) and B)the team could have elevated Schwartz, kept the D truly intact, and still brought in Roman and Kromer.

[YardRat]

I would have been happy with Schwartz as a HC if he brought in a GOOD OC.

But Rex has a much better record as a HC than Schwartz.

And Rex's defense has never finished worse than eleventh with some terrible players on the Jets.

And other than that one year, Rex's defense has never finished out of the top 10.

With the players on the Bills, I expect the Bills defense to finish in the top 5. And the Bills to make the playoffs.

The difference between Schwartz and Ryan is Jim took a **** team and got them into the playoffs...Rex took a playoff team and built them into ****.

[YardRat]

One of the things I find particularly annoying about Ryan, and it only tangentially has to do with the football team, is his exuberance over having an owner with deep pockets and willingness to spend, spend, spend....on toys.

Might as well be Whaley and Ryan in the commercial...

https://i.ytimg.com/vi/vxY82cpiEwI/mqdefault.jpg

"Like daddy Pegula always says...Money don't spend itself..."

[Mace]

But it's far more likely this year's team takes a step backwards.

I'm totally opposite. I think this year they step forward via Ryan's Ryaning. They'll stink after a couple years of it when Ryan wears off after not quite getting as far as we want.

Unless Roman really is all that. I have no clue but it will be entertaining in a Ryan kind of way.

[better days]

Maybe they didn't take their team 'almost all the way', but A)there were plenty of offensive-minded head coaches available (Kubiak, Trestman, Jackson) and B)the team could have elevated Schwartz, kept the D truly intact, and still brought in Roman and Kromer.

None of them are as good as Gruden when it comes to offense.

[Jimkelly12203]

And, you may hate Doug Marrone, but he was the only head coach that could get to 9 wins in how long?

THAT is putting your money where your mouth is.

Ryan will get his chance, but when he falls short I will laugh, and laugh, and laugh. And be resplendent in telling you how I told you so.
Marone sucked dude. The OL with substantially the exact same players as he inherited went from a strength to a joke and its the one unit he focused his coaching efforts on. He alienated himself from everyone else in the organization and his OC was either bad, neutered by him, or both. Yeah he got us to 9 wins for the first time in forever. But he was not a good coach, he was fortunate to have a really good D, good DCs and a veteran QB that could lead with poise even if he didn't have the greatest ability on earth.

[Jimkelly12203]

There were other things Marrone did too, that wreaked.

He put Robert Woods into his doghouse for some reason. That is one of the most unheralded players on the team IMO.

I would thank this if I could. This is up there on my list of questions about what the hell Marone was thinking.

[Shane Brother Shane]

Ryan will get his chance, but when he falls short I will laugh, and laugh, and laugh. And be resplendent in telling you how I told you so.

Some, like Rex Ryan, have the winsome ability to express their bravado with a faint note of humor, even self-parody.

Others, alas, just come off as blowhards...

[Strongman]

Marone sucked dude. The OL with substantially the exact same players as he inherited went from a strength to a joke and its the one unit he focused his coaching efforts on. He alienated himself from everyone else in the organization and his OC was either bad, neutered by him, or both. Yeah he got us to 9 wins for the first time in forever. But he was not a good coach, he was fortunate to have a really good D, good DCs and a veteran QB that could lead with poise even if he didn't have the greatest ability on earth.

Notice how Marrone didn't get much interest as a HC when he skulked away from here? His new job in Jacksonville wasn't exactly a lateral move. Aside from his unstable personality, other teams know it was our defense that was most responsible for our winning season.

[better days]

Notice how Marrone didn't get much interest as a HC when he skulked away from here? His new job in Jacksonville wasn't exactly a lateral move. Aside from his unstable personality, other teams know it was our defense that was most responsible for our winning season.

Marrone couldn't even get a job as an OC.

From HC to position Coach. I can't remember another HC Coach in the NFL that fell that far.

[Strongman]

Marrone couldn't even get a job as an OC.

From HC to position Coach. I can't remember another HC Coach in the NFL that fell that far.

With the way he left this team, he'll be lucky to ever be a HC again. He really comes across as being arrogant, paranoid, and mentally unstable. Maybe after considerable rehabilitation time in Jacksonville, he might one day be an OC.

[GingerP]

Marrone couldn't even get a job as an OC.

From HC to position Coach. I can't remember another HC Coach in the NFL that fell that far.

Mike Mularkey was a TE coach for the Titans after getting fired by the Jags.

[Joe Fo Sho]

Mike Mularkey was a TE coach for the Titans after getting fired by the Jags.

Dick Jauron became the Eagles Defensive Backs Coach after we were done with him.