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Jets vs. Bills: Rex Ryan With Typical Rex Move In Naming Of Captains

By Kenneth Teape

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The Jets and Bills will face off in an important game Thursday night, and Rex Ryan has lobbed the first barb towards his old team with who he named as a captain for the game.

The New York Jets will be hosting the Buffalo Bills on Thursday Night Football in Week 10. That means that Rex Ryan will be making his first return to MetLife Stadium since the Jets fired him following the 2014 season. Ryan has always had a penchant for stirring the pot and causing headlines, and things will be no different this time.

Ryan announced on Monday that he will be making naming a new captain this week for the game against the Jets. Anyone who watched or followed the Jets over the six-year tenure with Ryan as the head man should have no problem guessing who will take the field as a captain this week.

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Just go back a couple of months and think of the biggest thing that has happened to the Jets. Sheldon Richardson’s offield issues would come to mind, but the one that sticks with people the most is the Punch Hear Round The World, when IK Enemkpali punched quarterback Geno Smith so hard in a dispute over $600 that he broke his jaw. Well, Ryan and the Bills signed Enemkpali and now he is making headlines again, as Ryan decided he will be an honorary captain for the game against the Jets Thursday night.

This is a typical Rex Ryan move, as it should come as no surprise that he will be doing this against his old team. That will just be more gas on the fire in what is a very important game for both teams. The Jets, currently 5-3, are only one game ahead of the Bills, who are 4-4. The winner of this game will wake up Monday morning with one of the two Wild Card spots heading into Week 11, making this as important a game as any this season for either team.

This is something Ryan does when he has players facing off with old teams, or playing near their home. For example, former Jets tight end Matthew Mulligan will be out there as well. It is a nice gesture that normally goes unnoticed, but Ryan had to know this situation was different given the history of Enemkpali and the Jets.

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This move is something that could rile up the Jets, as Smith is still a part of their team. Brandon Marshall is one player on the Jets that is not surprised about the move, saying, “Typical Rex. That’s a Rex Ryan move. Are you guys surprised?” Marshall would also add that he loved it, saying, “He has the balls to do it.”

That he does, but this is also a clear example of the different direction the Jets are heading in under Todd Bowles. Ryan may win the headlines in his return to MetLife, but there is no guarantee that he will come away with the all important victory. Bowles has no interest in bringing up things from the past, and has no interest in winning in the headlines and stirring the pot; his main focus is on the game at hand.

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What would make this situation even better is if Bowles trotted Smith out there as a captain, trolling the troll that Ryan has lobbed in. It is something that hasn’t been discussed yet Bowles said, but you can be sure that it won’t be. Bowles does not give off the impression that he will take part in such charades, and should be able to keep the Jets even keeled for what will be an energized atmosphere for a Thursday night game against a division opponent.

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