Fiery Rob Ryan ready to kick some Chief …

By Anthony Carroll  |   Friday, September 12, 2008  |  Comments( 192 )

Oakland Raiders
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After a 27-point season-opening drubbing, there’s no angrier fans in the NFL right now than those who follow the Oakland Raiders.

Four days after the ugly loss, though, not one of those fans -- or maybe all combined -- is angrier than defensive coordinator Rob Ryan. The 45-year-old swore more than 25 times during a Thursday meeting with reporters that quickly evolved into a long, fiery monologue.

“Am I pissed off about Monday night?” Ryan asked himself out loud. “You’re damned right. It’s on me, and come on, guys, enough’s enough.”

After watching the Broncos beat his ‘D’ for more than 440 yards (300 passing) and 40 points, Ryan had enough of the press asking him questions and enough of fans criticizing his play-calling.

It was his turn to talk. Or scream.

“Yeah, it didn’t go well, and I’ve seen some comments out there, some days you guys aren’t perfect,” Ryan told reporters. “I know you’re the best at your profession. I am too. I’m man enough to stay up here and say, 'I didn’t have a good game.' … Only difference is, you guys, when you’re out there, you can hit spell check. After I call a bad one, I can’t hit spell check. That’s a big difference.”

I tkae offense to taht.

Ryan was criticized harshly (myself included) for failing to bring pressure on the quarterback, something Oakland has struggled to do since he became coordinator in 2004. The Raider D-line didn’t take down QB Jay Cutler once in Week 1, letting him sit comfortably in the pocket for much of the game. In turn, the secondary -- particularly new addition DeAngelo Hall -- suffered greatly. A few questionable play calls, Ryan admits, also made the talented Oakland secondary look terrible throughout much of the game.

“Our style of play is what it is, and that’s me. That’s Rob Ryan’s style of play for our defense and for our players. Do we have great players? Yes. Every one of those guys, DeAngelo Hall, who seems to be under attack, Nnamdi Asomugha, who nobody gets a completion on. What, did they hit a hitch route on him? C’mon guys. Put it on me, let’s not make up some (expletive).”

Rookie Broncos receiver Eddie Royal beat the Raider secondary to the tune of 146 yards and one touchdown on nine grabs; many of those catches came in front of (or behind) Hall. Denver’s first TD of the game was a 26-yard Cutler-to-Royal strike behind another big offseason pickup, ex-New York Giants safety Gibril Wilson.

“Put [the blame] on this damned guy in front of you that is just as disappointed as anybody out there and more so,” Ryan added. “This is my profession. That’s why I was embarrassed by it.”

Oakland will face the Kansas City Chiefs (0-1) on the road this weekend. Some rumors already claim that if the Raiders don’t leave Arrowhead with a win, head coach Lane Kiffin will be canned by owner Al Davis. None of those reports have been confirmed, though, and the mere thought of such a drastic action would be devastating to the young Raiders team.

Either way, Ryan is set on getting his job done this week. That’s priority No. 1. It’s his only priority.

“I know we’re on point. We’ve got great players. They’re pros. They’ll work. We’ll get better. We’re all disappointed with how things went. Can it be fixed? Hell yeah. And we gotta do it. (Bleep!), we will do it.”

“I’ll be the same guy up in front of you next week when we kick ass,” Ryan said. “But I’ll be the same guy if we stumble again.”

Notice the uses of “if” and “when.”

Anthony Carroll can be contacted at
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About Anthony Carroll

Anthony Carroll began writing for RealFootball365.com on Sept. 26, 2005, making him one of the longest tenured contributors to the “365” team. As a senior writer, Anthony has taken on the task of delivering original content to the silver and black faithful year round, despite having to deal...
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CommentsComments: 192  |  Sign Up  View all comments
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No.1
The Shape		06:42 AM
09/12/2008
Ryan needs to go plain and simple. He hasn't done shit since he's been with the Raiders. I wonder if he realizes that his so...
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No.2
08:58 AM
09/12/2008
RYAN NEEDS TO GO. He has the players but not the results. He has a very solid secondary he made look like the worse in the NFL....
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No.3
09:45 AM
09/12/2008
Can anyone tell me why D.Hall is not a press corner? How in the hell can the Raiders sign him to a big contract and he it's a...
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