In his first television gig as an analyst for ESPN ahead of Super Bowl LI, Rex Ryan made fun of himself for guaranteeing he’d be in the Super Bowl two years back before his first season with the Buffalo Bills.
"True to my prediction that I'd be in the Super Bowl. I guaranteed it, and here it is." -Rex Ryan pic.twitter.com/Ol2qXtUYpZ
— NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) February 5, 2017
Ryan’s prediction that the Bills would play in the Super Bowl two years ago raised plenty of eyebrows. They failed to live up to his promise, and in the end he was ousted from his position of head coach before the 2016 season came to its conclusion.
This was further seen when he said he thinks he’d be coaching in the Super Bowl if the Falcons had hired him instead of Dan Quinn.
“Yeah. Absolutely. I do,” Ryan said, per the New York Daily News. “I think regardless of where I went, that team would be playing for [the Lombardi Trophy]. That’s how screwed up I am. That’s how I think. I think when you take a job, you assume you can win regardless of what they have or don’t have.”
Never afraid to speak his mind, make bold predictions or say he was wrong in hindsight, Ryan appears to be a natural as a television analyst.
That doesn’t mean he’s finished with coaching in the NFL, however. He’s even said he’s willing to return to the New York Jets in some capacity while making it clear he doesn’t wish the Bills good luck in the future.
Wherever he lands next, we can be sure Ryan will continue to amuse us with his loquacity.