Link: Ryan Overcomes Dyslexia
Randy Lange wrote a very interesting article on Rex Ryan, and found out something about him that might surprise many fans.
“Well, you’d be surprised to know I am dyslexic … all my life I struggled,” Ryan told newyorkjets.com.
…
“I’ll tell my players anything because I’m not ashamed that I have this. It’s something that I overcame,” he said. “By far I’m not a perfect person and I don’t have all the answers. But if I can relay a story that’s happened to me or a situation that’s happened in my life that I think a player possibly can benefit from, I’ll be more than happy to share it.”
And Ryan is happy to spread the word outside of the confines of the Atlantic Health Jets Training Center to the public. His upbeat message to kids and adults is to hang in there and run with that ball.
“If you have dyslexia, you can still reach your goals,” he said. “And understand, it’ll be a negative, no question, it’s a challenge. But if you overcome it, you can do some great things, so don’t let it get in your way. Find ways to work with it. I truly believe it’s nothing to be embarrassed about.
Knowing this piece makes a lot of sense on why and how Rex Ryan runs his defense the way he does. From the first day he said he wanted to Keep It Likeable and Learnable (K.I.L.L.), that he was going to make his defense easy for and fun for his players to learn and subsequently play.
If Ryan didn’t enjoy being a student as a kid, it makes sense why he’s implementing the team as it is now. Mangini of course was more of a cerebral coach, poring over film, looking at statistics to determine the best possible outcomes and times for specific plays like onside kicks and such.
Maybe Rex does that too, but he knows that if he doesn’t teach to the lowest common denominator, something he’s felt like himself once upon a time, he’s going to lose his players, and if he loses his players then he loses his defense. It’s great to see a coach sympathetic to his players, and from that you can see why his players respect and like him so much. Now, I just can’t wait for the Jets to KILL their opponents in 2009 …
I hope he still puts bounties on opposing players, and doubles the bounty on players like Tom Brady!
Very cool story. The best teachers are the ones who know what it’s like to sit in the back and not “get it”.
Jets Fan
If you heard Bart Scott miked up … there might be some of that .. but it wouldn’t be from coaches, it would be … ahem … player driven …
(Since a coach couldn’t condone that)
As long as he excels with the O’s and X’s…
Good story. And it is good attitude toward life. One should not be ashamed of, it is not a serious problem. One can easily overcome it.