The Jets have announced that Rex Ryan has been let go as head coach of the New York Jets. Jay Glazer was the first to report the news this morning.
General manager John Idzik was also informed this morning that he would not return in 2015. After leading the Jets to appearances in the AFC title game in his first two seasons, Ryan was never able to lead the team back to the playoffs. Ryan was 45-50 in six full seasons in New York, with 2014 ending on a 4-12 note after today's win (37-24) over the Dolphins. Ryan's coaching career at the college and NFL level has seen plenty of success. At 26 he was a defensive coordinator and assistant head coach at Division II New Mexico Highlands, and climbed from there onto staffs at Morehead State (FCS), a stint on his father's staff (Buddy) with the Arizona Cardinals, and stops at Cincinnati and Oklahoma before joining Bill Snyder's 1999 Kansas State staff for about a month. From there he moved back into the NFL, where he has stayed, first with the Ravens as the defensive line coach from 1999-2004, followed by a promotion to defensive coordinator in 2005 and another promotion to assistant head coach in 2008. In Baltimore, Ryan led some of the best, star-studded, NFL defenses of the past few decades. In 2009, Ryan was introduced as the new head coach of the Jets. He went 9-7 his first year, followed by an 11-5 season in 2010. But 2011 saw a drop in wins to 8-8 and then 6-10, 8-8 and 3-12 in the years leading up to 2014.At the end of the day, the leadership decided that progress wasn't being made, and it was time for a change. Ryan's tenure in New York was also littered with various off-the-field issues, and while he came in as one of the most blunt and brash head coaches in the NFL, he eventually settled in after a year or two in one of the brightest spotlights in sports. Chances are good that he lands on his feet somewhere, at least as a defensive coordinator or defensive assistant, just as soon as he's ready. As always, stay tuned to The Scoop for the latest. Below is a brief Twitter run-down of how things played out the past few days.