Former Jets head coach Rex Ryan believes he will get his old job back soon.
Ryan was asked on ESPN New York if he thinks he is going to get the Jets head-coaching job, and he said he’s very confident he will.
“100 percent, absolutely I do. And the reason I think I’m going to get it is because I’m the best guy and it ain’t close,” Ryan said.
Ryan said he is the perfect person to energize the players and the fan base, and he contrasted himself with Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, a hot head-coaching candidate whom Ryan believes would be wrong for what the Jets need.
“The thing you have to do, you have to connect with your football team, you have to connect with your fan base,” Ryan said. “The way they play, that’s the most important thing. Not just the Xs and Os and all that. This Ben Johnson, I love him. I absolutely love him. But I’m a better candidate for this job than he would be.”
Ryan twice led the Jets to the AFC Championship Game, and they haven’t been to the playoffs since. But Ryan himself was the Jets’ coach for four more seasons in which they missed the playoffs — and then coached the Bills for two years and missed the playoffs those two years as well. Ryan’s record wouldn’t seem to give him a great argument that he’s the best person for the job, but he’ll try to make that case to Jets owner Woody Johnson.