I Thought He Was Kinda Funny...

Is there anything worse than a fat guy with skinny arms? There is. A fat guy with skinny arms and a big blowhole.

...and then Rex Ryan just kept on yapping. I know some people were immediately annoyed with the "Ra-Ra" attitude that Rexy exuded from the second he was hired as the Jets coach. I have to admit that, even as a Dolphins fan, I was more amused and curious than aggravated. After years of stoic coaches who refused to "disrespect" their opponents by talking a little smack, it was a bit refreshing to see a guy who wore his aggression on his sleeve.

Well, five weeks and a game against the Dolphins later, and I've had enough. The deal-sealer was the post-game press conference when Ryan, rather than offer real credit to the Dolphins offense for running their game plan with outstanding precision, simply took a dump on his own defense:

“I used to see all those gimmicks when I was coaching back in college,” Ryan
said. “I’ve been a part of some bad performances before on defense, just not
this bad.”

I mean, to hear him, you would think that the Jets D just took their helmets off and carried Chad Henne into the end zone. God forbid that Ryan should acknowledge that a kid playing in his second start actually managed to remain poised enough to find the open receivers on the short routes and carefully pick apart his vaunted blitzes, or that offensive coordinator Dan Henning had done his homework and prepared extremely well. No, Ryan decided to denegrate his own team instead, referring snidely to the Wildcat offense as a "gimmick" play. "Gimmick," Rex? What, like fake punts and the "Seminole" formation? (Note: see how Channing Crowder responded to said "Seminole.")

This brings me to the current hornet in my helmet - that no one seems to recognize the Wildcat as a legitimate and effective NFL set. Commentators, opposing coaches, and everyone else under the sun keeps referring to it as if it were an amusing little trinket that will eventually be forgotten and discarded. Meanwhile, every team in the NFL is trying to integrate it into their scheme, with a very low success rate. What no one seems able to admit is that very few, if any, other teams have just the right guys to run it effectively. I'm no expert, but the Wildcat seems to be effective only when you have highly versatile backs, and I can't think of any tandem that's more versatile than Ronnie and Ricky. They're both smart, strong and quick, both can block and catch well, and Ronnie can even throw a decent short pass. Other teams appear to think that you just have to line up in a weird-looking formation and opposing defenses will immediately lose their bearings. Such does not seem to be the case, and other teams are learning this, albeit slowly. I don't know if it's a lingering dislike for Ricky Williams or decades of Miami having virtually no steady running game (outside of Mr. Williams, circa 2002), but very few are giving credence to the Dolphins unmatched ground attack.

Which brings me back to the fucking Jets. I now cannot wait for the next few games. What I saw Monday night was two teams gradually headed in opposite directions and casting off the skins that they were wearing during the first three weeks of the season. During those first few games, the Dolphins, while strong both with and against the run, looked a bit of a mess in terms of passing offense and defense, and were giving up big plays at an alarming rate. Now, they're starting to shore up those holes and Henne has already shown real ability. The Jets created a massive stir with their blitzkrieg defensive approach and hot-shot rookie quarterback. Now, the luster is wearing off, opposing offenses are beginning to figure out how to deal with those berserker blitz packages, and Mark Sanchez is looking like a rookie quarterback. I have a sneaking suspicion that Rex Ryan might be heading down the same road his father went down back in the 90s when "Buddy Ball" was supposed to be the savior of the Arizona Cardinals - fun and exciting at the start, but ultimately ineffective. Schadenfreude may not be an honorable sentiment, but I hope to see Ryan get more and more frustrated, continue to take it out on his defense, see that defense simply stop buying into his schtick, and ultimately see them all roll over and die.

Flash forward past the bye week: I've got a much better feeling about the Saints game, and an even better one about the game after in New York. Just think, Phins fans, of what Henne will be able to do with three more weeks of practice time. If Rex Ryan really feels that Henne was "made to look like Dan Marino," last week, then I think they may have to fit him for a straight jacket after what Henne may very well do to the Jets in week 7.