Bills' Rex Ryan vows to tone down prior to Jets revenge game

The most outspoken, outlandish head coach in the NFL is claiming that he has found religion. That's right, Buffalo Bills head coach Rex Ryan is saying he has learned the error of his ways and will no longer be the larger-than-life buffoon of years past. 

Ryan, who spent six years as head coach of the New York Jets, is known for being outlandish and preposterous. He has cried in front of his team, had to defend himself from an alleged foot fetish video that went public and has been known to dress like his brother, former NFL defensive coordinator Rob Ryan. But it is the over-the-top bravado and all the self-created hype that has drawn Rex Ryan criticism in recent years. 

Including the nearly annual tradition of guaranteeing that his team will be playoff-bound. This includes this past offseason where Rex guaranteed that the Bills would make the playoffs in his first-year as their head coach.  

All of which led Rex on Wednesday to talk about easing off all the hyperbole and bluster-filled mumbo jumbo. 

"Well, probably because we failed miserably. Nah but you know, I think it’s…I mean that’s probably the truth. Sometimes you don’t think about the consequences. I say what’s really on my mind. What I truly believe. But then it comes back and it bites you if it doesn’t go right, and as we historically know that I’ve done that more than once," Rex said on Wednesday on a conference call with members of the Jets media.  

"I’ll take all the recent criticism, I get that. That’s fine. I just don’t want my team to be criticized for it or looked at that way because their work that they’ve put in and all that, I don’t think they deserve it. Obviously we came up short but it’s not by lack of effort or anything else. It’s just we didn’t get it done. So I think instead of it all being negative that way, you know I could probably prevent some of that. I’m always gonna be true to myself but at the same time maybe I can keep those things internally a little bit more." 

It is a rare note of humility from Ryan, who, at 7-8, is ensured of a fifth straight non-winning season as a head coach. 

But the Bills have sounded critical in recent weeks of their head coach, a man who has certainly been criticized in the past by former players. This past offseason, Jets tight end Jace Amaro said that "guys weren't accountable" under Rex and others have sounded similar notes in the past.  

On Thursday, the Bills announced that their organization is bringing back their head coach next year, this despite the underwhelming season and the locker room issues. 

"When you look at it, I’ve never had a negative — you know I’ve never been looked at as a problem. So yeah I guess that would be … yeah that bothers me, no doubt about it," Ryan said. "Now I haven’t said anything publicly until now about it. But sure, that would bother me. Doesn’t mean I’m gonna change who I am or how I go about my business, I can promise you that." 

Ryan faces a Jets team that, with a win, will make the playoffs for the first time since 2010, which was with Ryan as their head coach. But the Jets went on to miss the playoffs each of the following four seasons, finishing .500 or below each time. 

Sunday is shaping up to be a Super Bowl of sorts for Ryan, who can make a big statement against the team that fired him last year. Earlier this season, the Bills beat the Jets 22-17 at MetLife Stadium. 

"I just want to win, and if you can win, I think that would be big. No question about it. You’d have two wins over a really good football team so I think that would be big for us. But as far as them, I’m not gonna get…Is there gonna be a little more satisfaction that way? I mean I can’t tell you that because there’s a lot of people there that I care about and you want them to do well," Ryan said.  

"But I don’t want them to do well at my expense. From a competitor in me, I want to beat them and that’s the truth. That’s just the way it feels. That’s the way it is and whether it’s my brother, whether it’s a lot of friends and all that stuff over there, I’m still gonna try to win. Regardless of who I’m up against."

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Kristian R. Dyer writes for Metro New York and is a contributor to Yahoo Sports. Follow him on Twitter @KristianRDyer. Email him at kristianrdyer@yahoo.com