Rex Ryan '100%' believes he'll be next Jets coach, gives blunt plan for Aaron Rodgers

Not only will former New York Jets head coach Rex Ryan interview for the team's open head coach position on Tuesday, he's certain he'll land the job.

Ryan joined ESPN New York's radio show "DiPietro & Rothenberg" on Monday morning and was asked if he really believes he'll be the Jets' next head coach.

"Oh, 100%. Absolutely, I do," he said. "And the reason I think I'm going to get it is because I'm the best guy for it. It ain't close. The thing you have to do is, you have to connect with your football team, you have to connect with your fan base. The way they play, that's the most important thing. It's not just the Xs and Os and all that. This (Detroit Lions offensive coordinator) Ben Johnson, I love him, I absolutely love him, but I'm a better candidate for this job than he would be."

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Johnson, 38, has emerged as one of the offseason's hottest head coach candidates after helping the Lions emerge as the NFL's highest scoring offense in 2024. ESPN reported that he's not likely to interview with the Jets.

Ryan, 62, last coached an NFL team in 2016. He spent six years (2009-2014) coaching the Jets and led them back-to-back AFC championship appearances. Ryan's Jets compiled a 46-50 record before his firing. He then went on to coach the Buffalo Bills in 2015 and 2016, leading the team to a 15-16 record in that time before Buffalo fired him ahead of its 2016 season finale.

Rex Ryan's plans for quarterback Aaron Rodgers

The former Jets' head coach's appearance on ESPN New York also included his plans for handling veteran quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

Ryan told "DiPietro & Rothenberg," "If he's back, it ain't gonna be the country club, show up whenever the hell you want to show up. That ain't gonna happen," Ryan said.

Last year, the then-40-year-old quarterback missed the Jets' mandatory minicamp to go to Egypt on vacation. Rodgers chalked up the absence to a scheduling mishap at the time, and New York fined him $100,000 for what former head coach Robert Saleh called an "unexcused absence."

"Clearly, when you have a guy that doesn't show up for mandatory minicamp – and, by the way, he's your quarterback, coming off an injury – I think that's an absolutely ridiculous message you send to the team," Ryan said.

In recent weeks, Rodgers' NFL future became more uncertain. He has acknowledged that 2024 may have been his last season – not just with the Jets, but in the NFL.

If he does decide to return to New York, Ryan insists he'll have a harder time getting away with more unexcused absences.

"If he comes back, things would be different."

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Rex Ryan coaching record

Ryan served as an NFL head coach for two different teams – the Jets and the Bills – over an eight-year span from 2009 to 2016. Here's how his coaching record looked over the years:

Jets years (2009-2014)

• 2009: 9-7; made playoffs, lost in AFC championship game

• 2010: 11-5; made playoffs, lost in AFC championship game

• 2011: 8-8; missed playoffs

• 2012: 6-10; missed playoffs

• 2013: 8-8; missed playoffs

• 2014: 4-12; missed playoffs

Overall record with Jets: 46-50 in the regular season; 4-2 in the playoffs

Bills years (2015-2016)

• 2015: 8-8; missed playoffs

• 2016: 7-8 (fired before Week 17); missed playoffs

Overall record with Bills: 15-16

In his eight years as an NFL head coach, Ryan holds a 61-66 record in the regular season and 4-2 record in the playoffs.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Rex Ryan vows to end Aaron Rodgers' 'country club' with Jets if hired