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Former NFL coach Rex Ryan has been an outspoken critic of Kliff Kingsbury and his Air Raid offense since the Arizona Cardinals hired him.
He continued his criticism of the coach and his offensive system in an appearance on ESPN radio’s Keyshawn, JWill and Zubin Show on Thursday, slamming Kingsbury’s system.
A question from Keyshawn Johnson set Ryan off on the Cardinals coach and his offense in Arizona.
After Johnson said: “I’m not hating on Kyler Murray. I’m hating on the Air Raid system,” the former NFL wide receiver asked Ryan if he liked Kingsbury’s offense and if he would implement it if he returned to coach in the NFL.
A laughing Rex Ryan replied, “You know Key, when Kliff Kingsbury came into the league, I was like ‘Dude is going to get smoked’,” Ryan said on the show. “And quite honestly it has because in college football, you have 100 some kids on your roster. So, you don’t care, you can go as fast as you want, you can do all this type of stuff and you’re going to wear out that defense. Well, you’re wearing out your own damn defense.”
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Ryan continued: “Yes, let’s face it. This Air Raid system like he’s implemented from college, you had the greatest player on the planet in Patrick Mahomes and you were .500 as a head coach at Texas Tech. Oh, by the way you had Baker Mayfield, too. So, it’s like, are you kidding me? This doesn’t win games. It puts up yardage. It puts up all this and I was criticized beyond belief about, ‘Well, see there you go, he’s Neanderthal football.’ Well, Neanderthal football still wins. You better be able to do both. When you need to run the football to be able to close out games, you better be able to do it. The same thing is here. Look, this isn’t, you know, I mean getting it out basketball on grass. That’s the most boring crap of all time. OK, now Kyler Murray is special. DeAndre Hopkins, special. I don’t care what offense you are going to do, you’re going to be successful with those guys. OK, there is no question. I think Kliff knows it now, it’s not about how many snaps you get, it’s about winning football games and there is two pieces to it, offense, defense and special teams, three phases of the game and you need to understand how you can protect one side or the other.”
Ryan wasn’t done: “Quite honestly I think his defense is ready to take a big step forward, but you as a head coach have got to bring back this Air Raid thing and go back to a damn NFL offense where you’re balanced, you are able to run the football, you are able to protect the quarterback instead of letting this young super star back there, you know, do his thing. Like he is going to work his magic. I don’t know if people realize how special this young quarterback is, but do more of the Russell Wilson type offense than this Air Raid thing and I think you will be more productive.”
It wasn’t all negative, however.
Ryan did pay Kingsbury a rare compliment during the interview, saying: “We’ve seen him back off on that and quite honestly he has grown. He’s a better coach than when he came into the league.”
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This isn’t the first time that Ryan has criticized Kingsbury and his system.
He blasted the coach during an appearance on ESPN’s Get Up! in 2019 after Kingsbury’s hire.
During his appearance on that show, the former New York Jets and Buffalo Bills coach predicted that Arizona would get “whipped” in the Cardinals’ season opener against the Detroit Lions.
“Basketball on grass. It’s so boring watching all this stuff right there,” Ryan said. “Come on, college football. I hope it gets smoked, also. I really do, because I think it’s so boring…. Kingsbury says ‘wait till Week 1.’ Oh, I can’t wait to see Week 1.
“They’re going to get whipped Week 1. Look, this guy … everyone talks about this great offense and all that. Yeah, if it’s fantasy football and you want points yardage, that’s great. How about wins?
“Kingsbury, let’s face it, had the best player in our league [at Texas Tech], he was 13-16 with Pat Mahomes at quarterback. How about you worry about wins?
Ryan, at the time, said he thinks opposing defenses will be able to shut down Kyler Murray and the Cardinals’ offense.
“That open-edge pressure, you’re going to see it all day long,” he said. “Teams are going to keep doing it. Their answer is the quick, little hits, screen or slant. Well, guess what? The DBs are going to know that. They’re going to be sitting on these guys, they’re going to challenge them, get in the face of these receivers, and they’re in for a long season. They better get that running game going, or they’re gonna get run out of town.”
For the record, the Cardinals and Lions tied in that Week 1 game, 27-27.
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Reach Jeremy Cluff at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @Jeremy_Cluff.
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