Big Bad Rex Ryan Apologizes to His Mom
CORTLAND, N.Y. -- Rex Ryan's mother has already scolded him. A little soap might be next for the New York Jets' foul-mouthed coach.
After a Rex-pletive-filled appearance in the premiere episode of HBO's Hard Knocks on Wednesday night, Ryan got a call from Mom. And, then, like a good son, he said he was sorry.
"Sometimes you get rolling and that's what happens," Ryan said Thursday. "I don't know why. I apologize if I offended more people than I usually offend."
Swearing is nothing new for NFL coaches -- or coaches in other sports, for that matter. It's just rare for fans to hear it on national TV. "Hard Knocks" is an uncensored look at the Jets through training camp.
"You don't even realize you're saying it," said Ryan, whose father, Buddy, was known to toss around a choice word or two during his NFL coaching career.
"My Mom's the only one really disappointed that I care about."
It didn't bother any of the players, who said that's just who Ryan is.
"Skip the F-bombs and everything else," defensive lineman Sione Pouha said. "You can really feel that this guy is passionate about what he does and is passionate about his players."
The curses aside, some viewers may have been more offended by some explicit scenes in the HBO vampire series True Blood, which aired just before Hard Knocks.
"Can't blame that one on me," Ryan said, laughing.
The first episode of the five-part Hard Knocks series touched on several topics, including star cornerback Darrelle Revis' holdout, the team's newest stars, players trying to hook on and playful banter between the coaches and the players.
"I watched it in my dorm room," Pouha said. "Had a couple of brownies -- that's probably a $5 fine -- but watched it in the room and the encore as well. It was quite entertaining."
Veteran pass rusher Jason Taylor, one of the newest Jets, was one of a handful of players who didn't watch.
"We're living it," he said. "We go through training camp all day. The last thing you want to do is watch training camp on TV."
One of the more entertaining scenes included Ryan going up against general manager Mike Tannenbaum in a punt-pass-kick competition. Tannenbaum went head-over-heels while unsuccessfully trying to field a punt.
"There's some people who probably watched it over and over," a smiling Ryan said -- likely referring to Revis' agents.
"I don't know if people get used to seeing coaches and the GM having fun," linebacker Bart Scott said. "You're not used to seeing fun. So, we like to have fun. I think (people) get a greater appreciation of how we go about our business."
NOTES: C Nick Mangold sat out practice after he was smacked in the temple by Pouha on Wednesday. Ryan said it's not a concussion, and the team is just being cautious. ... CB Drew Coleman was wide right on a field-goal attempt of 40-plus yards that would have given the team a movie night instead of meetings. Ryan said the players would still get their movie night, but wouldn't tell them until they gather for the meeting.
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