Former New Orleans Saints defensive coordinator Rob Ryan and his brother Rex, head coach of the Buffalo Bills, have never been shrinking violets when it comes to speaking their minds, but now that Rob Ryan is out of a job, it seems like he's got even more to say.
Ryan, 52, known for long-flowing gray hair, was asked about the Washington Redskins' offense during an appearance Sunday on the NFL Network's GameDay Morning.
The Redkins scored 47 points against the Saints in Week 10.
"They turned my bye week into a bye-bye week," Ryan said.
Ryan took a healthy share of the blame for the Saints' troubles and said he understood why he was let go.
"Something had to be done," he said. "Right now the defense is ranked 33rd in the league and there's only 32 teams."
The Saints defense actually ranks 32nd in the NFL in points per game allowed (31.5) and total yards per game given up (424.7), 30th in pass yards per game (293.1) and 29th in rushing yards allowed (131.6).
Those numbers are certainly bad, but Ryan, who has led two top-10 defenses in 12 seasons as a defensive coordinator, including the 2013 season in New Orleans, and has two Super Bowl victories as a linebackers coach, said he believes he'll be back.
"Everything in New Orleans is being blamed on me, including Katrina, and I think it's a little farfetched," Ryan said. "So the bottom line is this: I'll hold my head high and walk out into the sunset, but believe me, I'm coming back with a vengeance."
Picky, picky
Michael Sam wishes he wasn't drafted by the St. Louis Rams.
Sam, who was taken by the Rams in the seventh round, said being the first openly gay player in the NFL was hard enough, but making the team in St. Louis was even harder, especially with the strength of the Rams' defensive line.
In an interview with Colin Cowherd on Friday's "The Herd" on Fox Sports, Sam said that the strength of the Rams' defensive line made it difficult to show his worth.
"If I had it my way I really do wish I went undrafted," Sam said. "I could have actually gone to a team who really needed the pass rush and needed a defensive end that could pass rush the quarterback.
"But the Rams -- even though I learned a lot from Chris Long and [Robert] Quinn, I think I could have done better and be on an active roster right now if I went to a different team."
Sam did eventually catch on with Canadian Football League's Montreal Alouettes, but left the team twice before announcing he was taking a break from professional football.
"I realized I'm not cut out to be a CFL player," Sam said. "All the work I put in and all the sacrifice I did, I'm an NFL player. So I'm going to sacrifice whatever, do whatever I can to get back into the NFL."
Sam went to to say that he'd been continuing training saying, "If a coach or general manager called me today, I can go play. I can strap up."
As long as it's not a call from Canada.
Friendly fire
Cheerleaders at Wisconsin's game against Northwestern on Saturday were forced to leave the sideline and hide in the tunnel at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wis., after being pelted by snowballs from the stands.
The catch? It was Wisconsin cheerleaders that were the targets of their own fans during a 13-7 loss.
The university wasn't happy, responding via Twitter: "Save the snowballs for Bascom Hill. Anyone caught throwing snow on the field will be cited and ejected by @UWMadisonPolice."
If Wisconsin officials were serious they'd threaten to dress offenders in Santa suits and send them to a Philadelphia Eagles game.
Sports quiz
Rob Ryan and Rex Ryan are fraternal twins. Which one is older?
Answer
According to their birth certificates, Rex is the oldest by 5 minutes.
Sports on 11/23/2015