The following appeared in this week's Fast Friday 5.
Former Jets and Bills head coach Rex Ryan has stuck his foot in his mouth –sorry, couldn't resist – plenty over his career as both a coach and an analyst for ESPN.
Heck, his bosses certainly had the right to make him apologize recently for calling Cowboys receiver Amari Cooper "a turd." It was a comment that obviously upset Devin and Jason McCourty and many others inside and outside the league.
But Ryan should not have to apologize or even explain his recent comments in which he answered rather emphatically the age-old question of who is more important to the Patriots' success over the last two decades, Bill Belichick or Tom Brady?
"It was definitely Tom Brady," Ryan said, going on to note Belichick's non-Brady resume. "Let's give him somebody else, let's give him Geno Smith, let's give him whoever, and let's see how many Super Bowls he would have won. We saw the answer was zero in Cleveland."
Belichick's longtime friend and underling with both the Browns and Patriots, Michael Lombardi, responded to Ryan's comment via Twitter and seemingly took offense.
"You'd think after competing against the Pats, he would know the how and why," Lombardi tweeted.
"Let's give him somebody else, let's give him Geno Smith, let's give him whoever, and let's see how many Super Bowls he would have won. We saw the answer was zero in Cleveland," Ryan said.You'd think after competing against the Pats, he would know the how and why.
— Michael Lombardi (@mlombardiNFL) April 9, 2020Ryan did indeed compete against the Patriots. Even beat them in the playoffs. Lost to them too often as well.
He does think he knows the how and why, despite acknowledging that Belichick is the greatest of all time. He thinks Brady was the key to all the success.
Maybe Ryan is right. Maybe Ryan is wrong. But he's allowed to have his opinion, especially since he's not necessarily what's known as a FOBB – Friend of Bill Belichick – like Lombardi is.
We'll never have a definitive answer to the Brady vs. Belichick question. Just opinions, some more biased than others. Opinions that we're all entitled to, including Ryan.
