Former Buffalo Bills and New York Jets head coach Rex Ryan is joining ESPN’s Sunday NFL Countdown. Starting this September, Ryan will make a weekly appearance on the NFL pregame show and contribute to SportsCenter, ESPN Radio and more.
Rex was previously a guest analyst during ESPN’s Sunday Countdown on Super Bowl Sunday in Houston in February will actually make his debut on the network this Saturday; Ryan will call the Florida State University Spring Game from Tallahassee, Florida.
ESPN’s Senior Coordinating Producer for NFL studio shows, Seth Markman released this statement on the hiring on Rex Ryan:
“Rex is authentic – what you see is what you get, and that will be great for our viewers on Sunday NFL Countdown. We also look forward to the insight and perspective he will bring to the show as an NFL coach who has worked in the league for two decades.”
Rex Ryan on the transition from the sidelines to television:
“This is going to be a new experience for me and I am really excited about it. I’ve been a coach for 30 years and I’ve been around football my entire life. I’m passionate about the game – just like the fans are, and I’ve coached in the league for a long time, so that’s the perspective I will bring to ESPN. I’m just going to show up and be myself and have fun with it.”
Ryan served as the head coach of the Buffalo Bills for the past two seasons and for the New York Jets from 2009 to 2014, leading the Jets to two back-to-back AFC Championship Games. Prior to becoming a head coach, Ryan spent nine seasons with the Baltimore Ravens as an NFL assistant coach.
It’s fairly odd that ESPN is getting rid of people like Tom Jackson and Chris Berman and replacing them with people who have zero experience in the industry.
