Rex Ryan hopes the Jets 'lose' Ryan Fitzpatrick in free agency – CBSSports.com
The Jets‘ standoff with Ryan Fitzpatrick might actually outlive us all. The new league-year, when Fitzpatrick was initially free to sign with any other team, officially began on March 9. Today is March 27, which means we’re coming up on the three-week anniversary.
It’s lasted so long that even former Jets coach Rex Ryan, now the coach of the Bills, is chiming in on the topic. Oddly enough, he’s in favor of Fitzpatrick leaving New York.
“I hope he goes somewhere else, I do,” Ryan said last week, per ESPN. “He’s tougher than hell. What’s lost in it is, he might have played poorly against us — it might have been a bad day (in Week 17) — but I think they won five straight with him and he was lighting it up, probably the most yards in the history of that franchise. We’ll see. Like I said, I hope they lose him.”
That game Ryan is referring to was essentially a postseason game for the Jets. But, instead of booking a playoff spot with a win, they blew their season with Fitzpatrick’s three picks leading the way. Oh and Fitzpatrick didn’t set the franchise record for passing yards, by the way.
So, either Rex Ryan is trying out that reverse psychology technique or the Fitzpatrick saga has completely messed with his head. The outcome Ryan should be hoping for is a scenario that involves the Jets overpaying Fitzpatrick to be their quarterback for the next few years, because that outcome ensures the Jets, who play in the same division as the Bills, will feature a crummy quarterback under center.
Rex Ryan doesn’t want Ryan Fitzpatrick to return to New York. (USATSI)
And that’s exactly what Fitzpatrick is: a subpar quarterback, who got a pass for last season thanks to a punch in the locker room, 31 touchdowns, and the Jets’ 10 wins. In every other statistical category, Fitzpatrick flopped, like he has for much of his lengthy career. I won’t rehash the argument against Fitzpatrick, because I already have many times — like I did here — and so has my colleague, Jared Dubin, as he did here and here.
For what it’s worth, the Jets deserve credit for their handling of the situation. They could’ve panicked and overpaid Fitzpatrick immediately. Instead, they’re presumably negotiating so that they don’t have to end up overpaying for a 33-year-old, average-at-best quarterback.
But for all of the sake of everyone, let’s just hope these negotiations end sometime soon. Because, at this point, I’m running out of ways to talk about Fitzpatrick’s subpar play.
