Two weeks ago New York Jets head coach said his team's wildcard weekend matchup against the Indianapolis Colts was "personal" with Peyton Manning. A week later he said the same thing about the Jets matchup with the New England Patriots but this time it was "personal" with Bill Belichick.
The Jets of course won both games. So is declaring a game "personal" against the opponent a lucky charm for Rex Ryan? Will he do it before Sunday's AFC Championship game against the Pittsburgh Steelers?
The Jets head coach said this week that he actually really likes Mike Tomlin.
"Well, give me somebody you want me to call out and I'll do it. Hines Ward? Casey Hampton? I guess those would be the two early targets," Ryan said. "But it's just a different feel. Last week, I just felt Bill Belichick had dominated me the last time we played, and I knew that wasn't going to happen again. But Mike Tomlin, he's one of my favorite coaches."
Ryan explained that a couple of years ago Tomlin's Steelers jumped out to a big lead over the Ravens when Ryan was a defensive coordinator. Instead of embarrassing them, Tomlin let up on the gas and ran the ball most of the second half.
Though it's still early in the week, it sounds like Ryan is toning things down a bit this week. We'll see how long that actually lasts.
Check out Gang Green Nation for more on the Jets leading up to the game.