Day after tweaking Ravens, Jets’ Rex Ryan sounds off on Belichick

Jets’ Ryan sounds off again _ on Belichick

CORTLAND, N.Y. — Rex Ryan’s mouth is at it again.

A day after using an expletive during his training camp news conference to tweak his former team, the New York Jets’ brash coach took a swipe at New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick.

Ryan said during a radio interview a few months ago that he didn’t come to New York “to kiss Bill Belichick’s rings.” He explained Tuesday what he meant, and might have provided more bulletin board material.

“When I said that about Belichick, I’m just letting him know I’m not intimidated by him,” Ryan said. “He’s got the same position I have. We’re both head coaches in this league. He just happens to have a hell of a lot more Super Bowl wins. I don’t have a win. I understand that, but we’re not going to tiptoe our way through this thing.

“You don’t line up and beat a Bill Belichick-coached team by tiptoeing in there.”

Ryan also didn’t shy away from any of the headline-grabbing comments he has made since being hired by the Jets in January.

“We’re going to be ourselves and I’m going to be myself,” he said. “How much more motivation are they going to get by putting a quote from me on the wall, saying I believe in my football team and I’m not going to be intimidated by a coach or anyone else?

“If that’s where you’re going to draw motivation from, hell, we’ll probably kick your (butt).”

Toward the end of his news conference Monday, Ryan spoke glowingly about Baltimore’s defensive tradition in advance of New York’s preseason game next Monday night. Then he mentioned former defensive end Michael McCrary.

“I am disappointed that they gave his jersey to some rookie who hasn’t proven” anything, the former Ravens defensive coordinator said, using an expletive. “Excuse my language.”

McCrary, a two-time Pro Bowl selection who retired after 2002, wore No. 99, which was given to second-round pick Paul Kruger, a linebacker-defensive end out of Utah.

“I got carried away,” Ryan said Tuesday. “It was more of a shock to my system. … I shouldn’t talk about somebody else’s football team.”