I didn’t out-coach Belichick. There’s no way. Our players out-played their players. That’s really what it came down to. There was nothing schematically I did to win that game. Our guys were prepared to play and that’s my job. But to say that I out-coached Belichick, I would not agree with that. I think it’s almost a joke. I don’t think anybody out-coaches Belichick.

– Rex Ryan.

There’s a ton of hubbub about Ryan’s bravado, and then there’s this. The guy says all week that the game is about him versus Bill Belichick. Then he very clearly out-coaches Belichick. Then he deflects the praise toward his players.

Shoulder the pressure, deflect the praise. Sure, he’s doing it all with awesomely brash fatman bombast, but it seems less like bravado and more like Media Relations for Coaches 101 to me. Again, I’m not sure any of it matters, but it’s precisely the opposite of Jerry Manuel’s approach. Whether it’s calculated or not, it has got to be at least part of the reason Ryan’s players seem to love playing for him.

Let’s go eat a goddamn snack.