NY Jets and Coach Rex Ryan Tone Down Tough Talk After Loss to NY Giants

 

Welcome to the silent season of Rex Ryan’s tenure.

The Jets’ coach brushed shoulders with Giants tailback Brandon Jacobs on the field after losing Saturday, begrudgingly tipped his cap to counterpart Tom Coughlin and all but declared his team’s campaign for a third consecutive playoff berth dead.

Now, in their final act of the regular season, the Jets (8-7) must find rejuvenation against the Miami Dolphins on New Year’s Day and rely on a series of losses by competitors to align in their favor.

“We better be ready,” defensive lineman Sione Pouha said.

The Jets have gone 6-8 in December during Ryan’s three-year stint, including back-to-back crushing losses the last two weeks. The math is now simple regarding his team’s playoff chances: The Jets must win in Miami on Sunday. They also need Cincinnati to lose (vs. Baltimore), Tennessee to lose or tie (at Houston) and either Oakland (vs. San Diego) or Denver (vs. Kansas City) to lose or tie.

“It’s frustrating to rely on other people,” safety Eric Smith said. “We had it in our hands. And we let it go.”

The NFL will not be looking into the postgame confrontation between Ryan and Jacobs, according to a source. That may be the only good news to come out of Saturday’s loss to the Giants.

In the postgame locker room, many players spoke of their playoff chances in the past tense. Their offense sputtered through another stretch of futility, with Brian Schottenheimer’s game plan calling for 64 pass plays.

Only 30 ended with completions.

“After 15 weeks of watching us play a certain way, they came out with a few disguises and coverages, and confused us all,” wideout Santonio Holmes said of the Giants. “We’ve been up and down all season.”

The Dolphins (5-10), meanwhile, started the season 0-7 but won’t be a pushover after playing inspired football in the second half of their season.

Tailback Reggie Bush, who signed with Miami as a free agent, has seized the opportunity to start as a full-time running threat, gaining over 1,000 yards and averaging five yards per carry. He had never rushed for as many yards in five seasons with the Saints.

The Dolphins gave the Patriots a scare on Saturday, taking a 17-point lead before falling 27-24.

“They clearly found a rhythm late,” cornerback Darrelle Revis said.

It’s anybody’s guess if the Jets will return to ground-and-pound against the Dolphins, the identity that vaulted them to two straight AFC title games.

“We’re really not built to play that game,” Ryan said about the pass-happy game plan against the Giants. “We’re not going to beat anybody throwing that many times.”

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Source : http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/football/jets/ny-jets-coach-rex-ryan-tone-tough-talk-loss-ny-giants-article-1.996839