Advertisement

Rex Ryan, Jets coach? Why ESPN analyst believes he should replace Robert Saleh

jacob camenker, usa today
·4 min read

The New York Jets will be looking for a full-time head coach during the 2025 NFL offseason after firing Robert Saleh five games into the 2024 campaign.

At least one former Jets head coach is hopeful he will be chosen to reprise his role with the organization.

That would be Rex Ryan. The boisterous 61-year-old coached the Jets for six seasons from 2009-14, overseeing the team's last playoff appearance and leading them to multiple AFC Championship games.

Ryan's tenure in New York was a roller coaster. The team endured extreme highs but also significant lows, including Mark Sanchez's infamous butt fumble, public outcry over a personal video leaked of Ryan and a failure to live up to multiple Super Bowl guarantees.

Here's what to know about Ryan's career and why the ESPN analyst believes the time is right for him to return to the Jets.

ROBERT SALEH LANDING SPOTS: Cowboys, Saints among coach's top 2025 options

Why Rex Ryan wants to coach Jets

Ryan was asked during an appearance on ESPN Radio's "DiPietro & Rothenberg" on Monday, Oct. 28 if he would consider becoming the Jets' head coach once again.

"I'd do it in a second," Ryan replied.

His reasoning?

"Because I am a New York Jet," the 61-year-old said. "I absolutely would."

Ryan remarked that he was "not here to politic" during the program. Nonetheless, he stated his case for why he believes he would be a good hire for the Jets about a decade after the team fired him.

“I tell the damn truth. I speak as a fan of this football team and [of] this community,” Ryan said.“That’s why it makes sense, so we’ll see. I hope I get an opportunity to interview for it. That's absolutely a given. I hope I get that opportunity."

Looking back at Ryan's time with the Jets – and his career trajectory since leaving New York – it's difficult to envision his wish becoming a reality.

Rex Ryan Jets coaching record

Ryan posted a record of 46-50 during his six seasons with the Jets. That included two winning seasons and two .500 campaigns, but New York bottomed out with a 4-12 record during his final season with the team.

Below is a look at Ryan's year-by-year record with the Jets.

  • 2009: 9-7

  • 2010: 11-5

  • 2011: 8-8

  • 2012: 6-10

  • 2013: 8-8

  • 2014: 4-12

Ryan enjoyed playoff success with the Jets. They posted a 4-2 record in two playoff appearances under his leadership, both of which ended in AFC Championship game losses.

However, Ryan's teams didn't make the playoffs in any of his final four seasons with the Jets. His winning record in 2010 was the last of his head coaching career to date, as he failed to post a record better than 8-8 in his two seasons with the Buffalo Bills.

JETS VS. TEXANS: Predictions, picks and odds for NFL Week 9 game

Rex Ryan coaching history

Ryan has been a head coach twice in his NFL career. The first time was his six-year stint with the Jets; he followed that up with a two-year run as the Bills' head coach, during which he posted a 15-16 record to give himself a career coaching record of 61-66.

Below is Ryan's full head coaching timeline:

Before his time with the Jets, Ryan worked on John Harbaugh's staff with the Baltimore Ravens for a decade. He began as a defensive line coach before becoming the team's defensive coordinator in 2005.

Prior to that, Ryan spent time with six different college programs, cutting his teeth as a defensive play-caller and turning himself into an NFL-level coaching talent.

Ryan has not coached in an official capacity since the Bills fired him one week prior to the end of the 2016 NFL season. Instead, he has worked as an ESPN analyst, though he has been rumored as a candidate for several defensive coordinator positions during his time with the company.

Jets coaching candidates

So, could Ryan be a coaching candidate for the Jets? It doesn't seem likely considering his career record and lengthy absence NFL coaching.

Perhaps returning somewhere as a defensive coordinator would allow him to work his way back into that conversation, but it's unlikely a team would pluck Ryan from the studio to be a head coach.

Who then could the Jets hire to be their next head coach? USA TODAY Sports outlined the following coaches as replacement options for Robert Saleh.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Rex Ryan to the Jets? Why coach wants to return to New York