Rex Ryan Says Jets Legend Joe Namath Is ‘On the Outside,’ Would Be ‘Shocked’ at Jets’ Preparation

Sure, Rex Ryan's coaching style may not be the cookie-cutter approach, but he has gotten his team to the AFC Championship game the past two seasons.

We've seen how he handles himself and how he handles his team, but is he getting his players too overconfident?

Joe Namath, Hall of Fame quarterback with the Jets from 1965-1976, appeared on ESPN Radio's Michael Kay Show and, perhaps doing his best Patriots fan impersonation, offered his criticism of Ryan.

"It starts at the top. Coach Rex Ryan I think has been doing a great job getting the team to two [AFC] championship games. But if there's one thing about the athlete, if you keep telling him how good he is, he's going to start believing it, to the point that he may not be preparing not quite the way he should. He may be losing some respect for the other team."

Ryan was asked about the comments and shot back a response, telling reporters, "I’m not going to change who I am because Joe Namath said something."

"He doesn’t know our team," Ryan says. "He’s on the outside. Even though he's a Jet, and once you're a Jet you're always a Jet … but he's on the outside, he's not in these meetings. I think if he was he'd be shocked at the preparation."