Nepotism? Heck yeah. BR played this organization to fruition. This from the USA today. I'd post the link but it's not a pretty picture.
Buddy Ryan's sons keep defensive genes alive
By Jarrett Bell, USA TODAY
Buddy Ryan, whose dominating "46" defense helped the Chicago Bears win Super Bowl XX, retired as Arizona Cardinals head coach after the 1995 season when his mission to build them into winners went belly up. But the legacy of the oft-controversial defensive innovator remains.
USA TODAY examines in two parts his twin sons, Rex and Rob, who coordinate two of the NFL's best defenses with the Baltimore Ravens and Oakland Raiders, respectively. The Ravens led for fewest yards allowed in 2006; the Raiders were third.
"They were the two best coaches I had on my (last) staff," says Buddy, 12-20 in two years with Arizona. "People said 'nepotism,' but now they've proven themselves." Many fall Sundays he is at his Kentucky ranch, watching his sons' teams on TV. The twins' work represents the most intimate manner Buddy sees of his imprint on today's game.
Part one: Raiders' Rob confident but not uncompromising
NAPA, Calif. — Extending the aluminum bat across an imaginary plate, Warren Sapp implores the pitcher to throw strikes after lobs sailed low and wide.
"C'mon, put it right 'here'!" Sapp bellows.
It was the last thing you would expect to see at an NFL training camp.
PART TWO: Rex Ryan pining for a chance at a head job
A half-hour after the Oakland Raiders ended a recent practice, a small group was playing home run derby. More startling is the right-handed hurler with the beer belly and flowing locks whose appearance is a cross between Ken "The Snake" Stabler and David Wells.
It's the defensive coordinator, Rob Ryan, 44. This is his idea of a post-practice diversion. Yes, he's a "players' coach" — and maybe not only for "defensive "players.
A few minutes before the derby, Ryan playfully sized up Jerry Porter as the physically toned wide receiver twirled a bat. "He wants to play defense," Ryan said. "Look at him. He's all gunned up. He's got some defense in there. I'd probably give him his own Superman package. Just let him fly around and whip somebody's ass."
FIND MORE STORIES IN: NFL | National Football League | Cardinals | Baltimore Ravens | Oakland Raiders | Rob | Al Davis | Warren Sapp | Super Bowl XX | Rex | Buddy Ryan | Rob Ryan
Porter says, "Ooh, coach. I like the way that sounds."
There is no mistaking: This is one of Buddy Ryan's sons. Spraying occasional expletives, Rob Ryan, in his fourth year as the Raiders defensive architect, is strapped with a confident edge. He has taken his dad's advice to inject his personality into his coaching style.
Does he think he and twin Rex will become head coaches? "Hell yeah," Rob says. "That's a fact. That's not something where we think, 'Oh, I wonder if it will happen?' B———-. I 'know' it will happen. We're both great coaches."
Although the Raiders went 2-14 last season, Rob's unit ranked third in the NFL for yards allowed — significant progress as a 4-3 scheme after the defense struggled the previous two years with his 3-4 design.
Rob and the bulk of the defensive staff were retained in the changeover from Art Shell to Lane Kiffin. "Lane comes in as a good, fired-up young coach," Rob says. Kiffin, 32, is the NFL's youngest head coach. "I have a lot of respect for Art, but it didn't work out. My job is to coach defense for Al Davis. This is a perfect fit. A Ryan should've been with the Raiders a long time ago."
Following 'Big' footsteps
Rob says he and Rex were destined to follow in Buddy's footsteps. Growing up around the game, they saw "Big," as Rob says of his dad, ascend to head coach jobs with the Philadelphia Eagles and Arizona Cardinals.
Rob broke into coaching on the college level after playing defensive end and linebacker at Oklahoma State. "After we graduated from college — finally — our dad threw us in a hotel room, taught us (his famed '46' defense) and figured we'd carry on the legacy," Rob says. "We've worked our way up."
The twins landed their first NFL jobs in 1994 on their father's staff in Arizona. The elder Ryan left after a 12-20 record in two seasons.
"We got him fired in two years, but our careers kept going," Rob says. "Sorry, dad. At first, people screamed nepotism. My dad gave us a shot. I'm sure it was nepotism. But now we know what we're doing."
Rob has simplified his schemes since arriving in Oakland. As his 3-4 floundered, he demonstrated a willingness to adjust. Sapp said for weeks in 2005 he pleaded with him to switch to the type of 4-3 front Sapp flourished in during all-pro years with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers under coordinator Monte Kiffin.
"We were getting ready to go to Tennessee," Sapp says of a midseason game in 2005. "He looks at me and says, 'All right, you're getting your four-man rush, and I want that (SOB) on the ground. You got me, Sapp?' "
Sapp had three sacks and forced a fumble that was recovered for a touchdown. "After the game," Sapp says, "he looked at me and says, 'Now I see why Monte stood on the sideline with his chest stuck out.' "
The development of the unit, also boosted by defensive end Derrick Burgess' 27 sacks the last two years and the emergence of middle linebacker Kirk Morrison, remains an evolution. The Raiders allowed nearly 21 points a game last year. Although they were No. 1 against the pass, they ranked 25th against the run.
"I see 4 yards a carry," Rob says. "That was (tied for 11th) in the NFL. But we're going to get better on run defense so we can kill the passer."
Rob doesn't talk as much about strategy with his father as he once did. His dad, who lives in Kentucky and watches every Raiders and Baltimore Ravens game he doesn't attend, can easily decipher the schemes.
"I don't bore him with that," Rob says. "But I tell him things that are bothering me. It's more a dad-son relationship. ... When I first started coaching, I'd call him all the time. Probably drove him crazy."
Not much, he says, has changed over the years when it comes to talking football with his mother, Doris, who wrote a dissertation on football strategy.
"My mother is my biggest critic," Rob says. "She's tough. Smart lady. Knows football. If we mess up, she lets me know about it. And so does Mr. Davis."
Posted 10h 7m ago
Updated 8h 55m ago E-mail | Save | Print |
To report corrections and clarifications, contact Reader Editor Brent Jones. For publication consideration in the newspaper, send comments to [email protected]. Include name, phone number, city and state for verification.
Buddy Ryan's sons keep defensive genes alive
By Jarrett Bell, USA TODAY
Buddy Ryan, whose dominating "46" defense helped the Chicago Bears win Super Bowl XX, retired as Arizona Cardinals head coach after the 1995 season when his mission to build them into winners went belly up. But the legacy of the oft-controversial defensive innovator remains.
USA TODAY examines in two parts his twin sons, Rex and Rob, who coordinate two of the NFL's best defenses with the Baltimore Ravens and Oakland Raiders, respectively. The Ravens led for fewest yards allowed in 2006; the Raiders were third.
"They were the two best coaches I had on my (last) staff," says Buddy, 12-20 in two years with Arizona. "People said 'nepotism,' but now they've proven themselves." Many fall Sundays he is at his Kentucky ranch, watching his sons' teams on TV. The twins' work represents the most intimate manner Buddy sees of his imprint on today's game.
Part one: Raiders' Rob confident but not uncompromising
NAPA, Calif. — Extending the aluminum bat across an imaginary plate, Warren Sapp implores the pitcher to throw strikes after lobs sailed low and wide.
"C'mon, put it right 'here'!" Sapp bellows.
It was the last thing you would expect to see at an NFL training camp.
PART TWO: Rex Ryan pining for a chance at a head job
A half-hour after the Oakland Raiders ended a recent practice, a small group was playing home run derby. More startling is the right-handed hurler with the beer belly and flowing locks whose appearance is a cross between Ken "The Snake" Stabler and David Wells.
It's the defensive coordinator, Rob Ryan, 44. This is his idea of a post-practice diversion. Yes, he's a "players' coach" — and maybe not only for "defensive "players.
A few minutes before the derby, Ryan playfully sized up Jerry Porter as the physically toned wide receiver twirled a bat. "He wants to play defense," Ryan said. "Look at him. He's all gunned up. He's got some defense in there. I'd probably give him his own Superman package. Just let him fly around and whip somebody's ass."
FIND MORE STORIES IN: NFL | National Football League | Cardinals | Baltimore Ravens | Oakland Raiders | Rob | Al Davis | Warren Sapp | Super Bowl XX | Rex | Buddy Ryan | Rob Ryan
Porter says, "Ooh, coach. I like the way that sounds."
There is no mistaking: This is one of Buddy Ryan's sons. Spraying occasional expletives, Rob Ryan, in his fourth year as the Raiders defensive architect, is strapped with a confident edge. He has taken his dad's advice to inject his personality into his coaching style.
Does he think he and twin Rex will become head coaches? "Hell yeah," Rob says. "That's a fact. That's not something where we think, 'Oh, I wonder if it will happen?' B———-. I 'know' it will happen. We're both great coaches."
Although the Raiders went 2-14 last season, Rob's unit ranked third in the NFL for yards allowed — significant progress as a 4-3 scheme after the defense struggled the previous two years with his 3-4 design.
Rob and the bulk of the defensive staff were retained in the changeover from Art Shell to Lane Kiffin. "Lane comes in as a good, fired-up young coach," Rob says. Kiffin, 32, is the NFL's youngest head coach. "I have a lot of respect for Art, but it didn't work out. My job is to coach defense for Al Davis. This is a perfect fit. A Ryan should've been with the Raiders a long time ago."
Following 'Big' footsteps
Rob says he and Rex were destined to follow in Buddy's footsteps. Growing up around the game, they saw "Big," as Rob says of his dad, ascend to head coach jobs with the Philadelphia Eagles and Arizona Cardinals.
Rob broke into coaching on the college level after playing defensive end and linebacker at Oklahoma State. "After we graduated from college — finally — our dad threw us in a hotel room, taught us (his famed '46' defense) and figured we'd carry on the legacy," Rob says. "We've worked our way up."
The twins landed their first NFL jobs in 1994 on their father's staff in Arizona. The elder Ryan left after a 12-20 record in two seasons.
"We got him fired in two years, but our careers kept going," Rob says. "Sorry, dad. At first, people screamed nepotism. My dad gave us a shot. I'm sure it was nepotism. But now we know what we're doing."
Rob has simplified his schemes since arriving in Oakland. As his 3-4 floundered, he demonstrated a willingness to adjust. Sapp said for weeks in 2005 he pleaded with him to switch to the type of 4-3 front Sapp flourished in during all-pro years with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers under coordinator Monte Kiffin.
"We were getting ready to go to Tennessee," Sapp says of a midseason game in 2005. "He looks at me and says, 'All right, you're getting your four-man rush, and I want that (SOB) on the ground. You got me, Sapp?' "
Sapp had three sacks and forced a fumble that was recovered for a touchdown. "After the game," Sapp says, "he looked at me and says, 'Now I see why Monte stood on the sideline with his chest stuck out.' "
The development of the unit, also boosted by defensive end Derrick Burgess' 27 sacks the last two years and the emergence of middle linebacker Kirk Morrison, remains an evolution. The Raiders allowed nearly 21 points a game last year. Although they were No. 1 against the pass, they ranked 25th against the run.
"I see 4 yards a carry," Rob says. "That was (tied for 11th) in the NFL. But we're going to get better on run defense so we can kill the passer."
Rob doesn't talk as much about strategy with his father as he once did. His dad, who lives in Kentucky and watches every Raiders and Baltimore Ravens game he doesn't attend, can easily decipher the schemes.
"I don't bore him with that," Rob says. "But I tell him things that are bothering me. It's more a dad-son relationship. ... When I first started coaching, I'd call him all the time. Probably drove him crazy."
Not much, he says, has changed over the years when it comes to talking football with his mother, Doris, who wrote a dissertation on football strategy.
"My mother is my biggest critic," Rob says. "She's tough. Smart lady. Knows football. If we mess up, she lets me know about it. And so does Mr. Davis."
Posted 10h 7m ago
Updated 8h 55m ago E-mail | Save | Print |
To report corrections and clarifications, contact Reader Editor Brent Jones. For publication consideration in the newspaper, send comments to [email protected]. Include name, phone number, city and state for verification.
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