After publicly campaigning for an interview, Rex Ryan will officially meet with the Jets about their head coaching vacancy. According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, Ryan is set to interview with the Jets about the job on Tuesday.
Ryan made a public pitch for the gig back in November, and he expressed optimism about his candidacy last week. While most reports were focused on Ryan’s desire for an interview, there was a growing, league-wide sentiment that the former Jets HC would get a legitimate shot at the job. Ryan’s wish will come true, and he’ll now have a chance to state his case to his former employer.
Ryan, of course, had a six-year stint as the Jets head coach more than a decade ago. During his first two years at the helm, Ryan helped guide the Jets to the AFC Championship Game, their most successful run since the late-1990s. The Jets peaked in 2010; they finished with 11 wins and beat their hated rival, the Patriots, in the Divisional Round before dropping the conference championship to the Steelers.
That season represents the Jets’ last playoff appearance. Ryan’s squads went 22-26 between 2011 and 2013 before bottoming out with a four-win showing. Despite locker room support, Ryan was let go following that 2014 campaign. He subsequently caught on with the Bills, but he didn’t even last two years in Buffalo. His squad went 8-8 in 2015, and after reportedly losing the locker room in 2016, Ryan was canned before that season concluded.
Since then, Ryan has served as an analyst on ESPN, but he’s still occasionally popped up in coaching searches. He was connected to the Cowboys defensive coordinator job just this past offseason, and he’s been connected to previous coordinator openings with the Broncos and Chiefs. However, his upcoming Jets interview marks his first head coaching opportunity since getting fired by the Bills.
Known for his big personality and his love for snacks, Ryan would certainly provide a different voice for a lost Jets locker room. After firing Robert Saleh following a 2-3 start to the season, interim head coach Jeff Ulbrich has only squeezed out two wins in 11 tries, and there have been recent reports that players have already quit on the 2024 iteration of the squad. That surely wouldn’t fly under Ryan, although it’d be interesting to see how the coach’s intense approach would resonate with another strong personality in Aaron Rodgers, who could still be under center for Gang Green in 2025.
Ryan will now meet with former Jets GM Mike Tannenbaum and former Vikings honcho Rick Spielman, who are running the organization’s search for a new HC and GM. Ryan and Tannenbaum already have a relationship, as the duo worked alongside each other during their respective stints with the Jets. Mike Vrabel and Ron Rivera have already interviewed for the Jets job, and Ulbrich is also expected to get a shot to retain his gig. The team has also been connected to Arthur Smith, so the Jets’ HC search certainly isn’t devoid of big names.
