Rex Ryan, You're on Notice Because It's Time to Deliver on the Hype in 2012

New York Jets head coach Rex Ryan is known for his bombastic predictions of Super Bowl glory for his team, and in 2009 and 2010, it made sense. The Jets reached the AFC championship game both seasons and they seemed destined to someday win a Lombardi Trophy with Ryan as head coach.

However, it seems as though Ryan is more interested in talking about what his team is going to do rather than leading them to accomplish these things. The Jets went 8-8 in 2011 though few changes were made to the roster that saw them end 2010 at 11-5.

Instead of progressing, the entire Jets roster seems to have taken a significant step backward this season, leaving the team with a number of questions that need answering before the team can be seriously considered a real contender in 2012 and beyond.

That hasn't stopped Ryan from believing that his team—and, by extension, himself—has what it takes to win a Super Bowl, and soon. Ryan stated so in his press conference after his team's Week 17 loss against the Miami Dolphins, and it's liable that we will all hear him say it a number of times before, and well into, the 2012 season.

What was once an unprecedented example of confidence has now turned into a subject of ridicule; one glance at the disorganized, undisciplined Jets team and it seems almost impossible for that crew, headed by that man, to return to the dominant form they displayed in 2009 and 2010.

Given enough time, a team will take on the personality of its coach, and that's what has happened to the Jets this year. Ryan has been too preoccupied with February to take care of business September through December and his team thus became unfocused and inconsistent in 2011.

Ryan shouldn't be concerning himself with next year's Super Bowl right now, let alone discussing it with the media. There are too many components of his team which need significant improvement, and that's where Ryan's focus should lie between now and the start of the next season.

He has a serious problem on his hands with quarterback Mark Sanchez, who seems only to get worse season by season. His once-fierce defense has no bite and no pass rush, the run game needs help if it's truly going to bail out the weak-armed and overwhelmed Sanchez as it was intended to and he needs to find a way to reign in disgruntled receiver Santonio Holmes (or release him).

None of those issues are hallmarks of a Super Bowl team and Ryan should refrain from anointing the Jets as such until he's adequately addressed them.

If Ryan continues to promise championships while failing to deliver, his time in New York isn't going to last much longer. Without tangible results, Ryan's confidence turns into delusion.

If an 8-8 season isn't enough of a reality check for Ryan, then perhaps no longer having a job will make him realize it's not what you say as a coach, but what you do as a team that matters most.