Assistant coach When his father was hired as the head coach of the Arizona Cardinals in 1994, he offered Rex his first job in the NFL as a defensive assistant, working with the team's
linebackers and
defensive linemen. After nine straight losing seasons prior to Buddy's arrival, the Cardinals produced an 8–8 record in Buddy's first year as head coach. However, in his second season, the team went 4–12 and subsequently, the entire staff was fired despite the positive performance of the defense. Having visited a class Ryan was teaching earlier in his career, Billick had been so impressed by Ryan's passion for the game of football that he decided to hire Ryan if he ever attained a head coaching position. The defense allowed a combined 23 points in four playoff games en route to a
Super Bowl XXXV victory (7 coming off a kickoff return touchdown in the Super Bowl), Ryan's only
Super Bowl ring, over the
New York Giants. In 2006, Ryan received Assistant Coach of the Year awards from
Pro Football Weekly and the
Pro Football Writers Association. Ryan was one of the candidates interviewed by the Ravens for their head coaching vacancy; however, the Ravens chose to name
John Harbaugh as the team's new head coach. Ryan also interviewed with
Miami about filling their head coaching vacancies, but the offers went to
Tony Sparano and
Mike Smith respectively. Ryan was disappointed by his failure to obtain a head coaching job, but he agreed to return to Baltimore under the direction of Harbaugh, who retained Ryan as defensive coordinator and promoted him to assistant head coach. In 2008, Ryan's final year with the team, the defense was ranked second overall in the NFL. The Ravens lost by a score of 23–14 in the
AFC Championship Game against the
Pittsburgh Steelers. Ryan's nine-year tenure with the Ravens, during which the defense never ranked lower than sixth overall in the NFL, concluded an hour later when he accepted the head coaching position with the
New York Jets.
New York Jets Following a
late season collapse in which the Jets missed the playoffs after losing four of their final five games, the team fired head coach
Eric Mangini on December 29, 2008. The team interviewed a host of candidates, including Ryan,
Jeff Jagodzinski,
Russ Grimm,
Bill Callahan, and
Brian Schottenheimer; however, the contract, which was valued at approximately $11.5 million over the course of four years, was ultimately offered to Ryan. Accepting the offer on January 19, 2009, Ryan immediately began to carry out a plan of action that he had outlined for the franchise's future. He planned to remove the players from distractions on and off the field and allow them get to know one another to build team chemistry. Thus, training camp was moved to the campus of
SUNY Cortland, where the team would be relatively secluded from the media and any other distractions. As a result, the team traded up to select
Mark Sanchez of
USC in the first round with the fifth overall pick in the
2009 NFL draft.
2009 season The Jets
opened their season against the
Houston Texans. Ryan began his head coaching career with a 24–7 victory over the Texans in which the Jets' defense shut out their opponents' offense. Houston's lone score came on a fumble return for a touchdown. Ryan and the Jets went on to defeat the
Tennessee Titans in Week 3, marking the first time the Jets opened the season at 3–0 since 2004. The victory also allowed Ryan to become the Jets' first rookie head coach to win his first three games since
Al Groh did so in 2000. The team eventually recovered and won five of their final six games despite Ryan mistakenly stating the Jets had been eliminated from playoff contention following a loss to the
Atlanta Falcons. The Jets defeated a previously unbeaten
Indianapolis Colts—a game not without controversy following
Jim Caldwell's decision to pull Indianapolis' starters with the Colts leading. The Colts, who had already clinched a playoff berth, had little to play for aside from a
perfect record. The victory secured the Jets' playoff berth as a wild card team. New York defeated Cincinnati again the following week, this time at
Paul Brown Stadium, in the
AFC Wild Card playoff round by a score of 24–14. On January 17, 2010, Ryan coached the Jets in an upset over the
San Diego Chargers, 17–14, on their way to the AFC Championship Game. The Jets subsequently lost to the Colts, 30–17, after leading in the first half of the game. Ryan became embroiled in controversy a few days later when he made an
obscene gesture towards heckling
Dolphins fans who spat on him during a
Strikeforce mixed martial arts event at
BankAtlantic Center in
Sunrise, Florida. Ryan apologized for his action, stating that it was "stupid and inappropriate."
2010 season As Ryan headed into his second year as the team's head coach, the club announced he had been given a two-year contract extension. Ryan continued to exude confidence in the team, writing on
ESPN's training camp tour bus "Soon To Be Champs" in August, referencing that the Jets would make it to the
Super Bowl and become the eventual champions. Ryan had been asked to sign the Jets' logo on the back of the bus but included the message with his signature. The prediction was met with some criticism while others praised his brashness, something that was felt to be lacking in the NFL at the time. When the team appeared on the television series
Hard Knocks that same month, Ryan was criticized, particularly by former head coach
Tony Dungy, for his use of
foul language. Dungy and Ryan later met in person to reconcile their differences. This set the stage for a
Monday Night Football matchup with their
division rival, the
Patriots, who were also 9–2. However, the Jets finished the season with an 11–5 record and qualified as a wild card team in the playoffs. The Jets were one win short of tying the franchise record in wins set by the
1998 team led by
Bill Parcells. In the wild-card round, the sixth-seeded Jets beat the
AFC South champion and third-seeded
Colts 17–16 on January 8, 2011, at the Colts'
home field,
Lucas Oil Stadium, to qualify for the Divisional Playoffs. The following week, on January 16, they defeated the AFC East champion and first-seeded Patriots 28–21, ending New England's eight-game winning streak. The victory made the Jets the first team to win back-to-back road playoff games in consecutive seasons, and qualified them to advance to the AFC Championship Game for the second consecutive season, where they lost on the road to the
AFC North champion
Pittsburgh Steelers 24–19.
2011 season The Jets opened their
2011 campaign with a 2–3 record, leading to discontent within their clubhouse. The team had begun to stray from its philosophy of consistently running the ball and began to pass more often, but the offense struggled with this adjustment. Wide receivers
Plaxico Burress,
Santonio Holmes, and
Derrick Mason reportedly approached coach Ryan to question offensive coordinator
Brian Schottenheimer's system. Ryan, meanwhile, had begun to isolate himself from the rest of the team as he became less "hands-on" and opted to have his assistants coach the players at their respective positions. Ryan attracted further attention to the team during a
Sunday Night Football game against the
New England Patriots when he responded to a heckling fan with an obscene remark and was fined $75,000 by the league. Despite struggling to an 8–7 record, the Jets still had the ability to attain a playoff berth if they won their regular season finale against the
Miami Dolphins in combination with the outcome of three other games played that day. Then free agent running back
LaDainian Tomlinson remarked that Ryan's Super Bowl predictions had an adverse effect on the locker room by placing undue pressure on the players. Ryan conceded this point and announced that he would refrain from making such statements publicly in the future.
2012 season Through 11 weeks in
2012, the Jets struggled to a 4–7 record. The presence of quarterback
Tim Tebow created a controversy as the media and fans called for Ryan to bench the inconsistent Mark Sanchez in favor of Tebow. Ryan was criticized for his decision to keep Tebow activated during the Jets'
Thanksgiving Day contest against the
New England Patriots despite Tebow playing with two broken ribs, leading to questions about his job security. With Tebow inactive for the Jets' following contest against the
Arizona Cardinals, Ryan made the decision to bench Sanchez, who threw three interceptions, in favor of
Greg McElroy. McElroy threw a touchdown pass to tight end
Jeff Cumberland to score the team's only points in a 7–6 victory over Arizona. Ryan renamed Sanchez the starting quarterback the following Wednesday after seeking out multiple opinions within the organization. In a must win game against the
Tennessee Titans to remain in playoff contention, Sanchez struggled; he completed 13 of his 28 passes for 131 yards while throwing four interceptions and fumbling the ball in Titans territory in the closing minutes of the Jets' 14–10 defeat. A day later, Ryan announced McElroy would start. Sanchez started the final game of the season after McElroy suffered a concussion in his lone start. Sanchez's struggles continued as the Jets fell to the
Buffalo Bills and ended their year with a 6–10 record, their first losing season under Rex Ryan. On December 31, 2012, the Jets fired general manager
Mike Tannenbaum, but announced that Ryan would return for the 2013 season.
2013 season For the
2013 campaign, Ryan overhauled his coaching staff, promoting
Dennis Thurman to defensive coordinator while adding several new coaches including offensive coordinator
Marty Mornhinweg. Newly hired general manager
John Idzik emphasized there would be competition at all positions including quarterback. The Jets drafted
Geno Smith in the second round of the
2013 NFL draft to compete with Sanchez. Ryan was widely criticized for his decision to insert Sanchez late in a preseason game against the
New York Giants after Sanchez suffered a season-ending shoulder injury which led to Smith being named the starter. Through their first nine games of the year, the Jets went 5–4 and earned Ryan some early Coach of the Year consideration. The team proceeded to lose their next three contests as the rookie Smith committed eight turnovers while failing to score during that stretch. This prompted speculation by analysts as to whether or not Ryan would be fired. The Jets broke their losing streak with a 37–27 win over the
Raiders that kept them in playoff contention. The following week, the Jets played the
Carolina Panthers and trailed by three points heading into the fourth quarter. In the span of five minutes, the Panthers scored twice and the Jets were unable to complete a comeback attempt, losing 20–30. The loss eliminated the Jets from playoff contention. The Jets defeated Cleveland, 24–13, and despite the uncertainty, the players and coaches were in high spirits. Several players including
Antonio Cromartie,
Calvin Pace, and
Willie Colon went on to publicly express their support for Ryan to return as coach. In the season finale, the Jets defeated the
Miami Dolphins 20–7, eliminating them from playoff contention. In the locker room after the game, owner
Woody Johnson and Idzik announced Ryan would return for the 2014 season much to the delight of the players.
2014 season The Jets opened the
2014 season with a 19–14 win over the
Oakland Raiders but proceeded to lose their next eight games.
Geno Smith, who started the year at quarterback, was replaced by veteran
Michael Vick midway through the season. Vick helped to snap the losing streak in a Week 10 win over the
Pittsburgh Steelers. Despite the victory, Ryan was seen cursing at an unidentified person and was subsequently fined $100,000 by the league. The team continued to struggle with Smith eventually being reinserted into the lineup. The Jets went on to win two of their last three games to finish with a 4–12 record, their worst finish under Ryan. Despite players again expressing their desire for Ryan to remain the coach, he was dismissed on December 29, 2014.
Buffalo Bills Ryan was hired as the
18th head coach of the
Buffalo Bills on January 12, 2015, agreeing to a five-year, $27.5 million contract.
2015 season The Bills opened the
2015 season with a 27–14 win over the
Indianapolis Colts. Frustrated by the Bills leading the NFL in penalties heading into their Week 5 game against the
Tennessee Titans, Ryan gave the entire team wristbands with the message "Yes sir". These were the only words he wanted his players to use with officials if they were flagged. After being flagged 17 times in Week 4 loss against the
New York Giants, the Bills were penalized only seven times in their 14–13 victory over the Titans. The Bills entered their bye week with a 3–4 record after losing in
London to the
Jacksonville Jaguars. Ryan gave the whole team the week off during the bye, and he himself found a secluded beach to "get away and focus". The Bills came out of their bye week and defeated the
Miami Dolphins by a score of 33–17, improving their season record to 4–4. Ryan is now 2–5 all time following a bye week. Ryan returned to
MetLife Stadium in Week 10 for a much anticipated
Thursday Night Football game against the
Jets. The Bills won the game by a score of 22–17, and improved to 5–4 on the season. Ryan faced questions before and after the game about his decision to name
IK Enemkpali, who had been released by the Jets in preseason after breaking quarterback
Geno Smith's jaw in an altercation, as Buffalo's captain for the game. The Bills were unable to make the playoffs in their first season with Ryan as coach, as they were eliminated in Week 15 with a 35–25 loss to the
Washington Redskins on December 20, extending their drought to 16 seasons, the NFL's longest active drought. They finished the season with an 8–8 record.
2016 season On January 10, 2016, it was announced that Ryan had hired his twin brother,
Rob, to the Bills coaching staff. Rob served as an assistant head coach and also worked with the defense. Three days later, Ryan hired former NFL standout
Ed Reed to be an assistant
defensive backs coach. The Bills opened the 2016 season with a 13–7 loss against the
Baltimore Ravens. On September 16, 2016, less than 24 hours after losing 37–31 to the
Jets in their home opener and falling to 0–2, Ryan fired offensive coordinator
Greg Roman and promoted running backs coach
Anthony Lynn to offensive coordinator. On December 27, after a
Christmas Eve loss to the
Miami Dolphins in Week 16 that eliminated the team from playoff contention, Ryan was relieved of his duties as head coach, and offensive coordinator Anthony Lynn was named as interim head coach for the final game of the season. Rob Ryan was dismissed as well. Many players were unable to thrive under Ryan's defensive scheme, which was described as complicated. The Bills' defense finished the 2016 season 15th in points allowed and 24th in rushing yards allowed. Following the season, Ryan went on a profane tirade against the team for allegedly quitting on him. Ryan was replaced on a full-time basis by
Sean McDermott in Buffalo, who proceeded to lead the Bills to the postseason in his first season in
2017. ==Television career==