Jets coach Rex Ryan continued his dominance over his twin brother, Saints defensive coordinator Rob, with Sunday’s win over the Saints.
Rex and Rob have met five times in the NFL and Rex is 5-0 against his brother. The 26-20 win over the Saints was Rex’s third over his brother since he became the Jets coach.
“All right, beat my brother again,” Rex joked as he opened his postgame press conference.
Rex admitted this win was special for him.
“There’s a little extra,” Rex said. “But again, at the end of the day, now you realize your bro just took a loss. That’s a tough thing. There’s no question. I pull for them every single week except one. I’ve mentioned it before: I always look at their score. I can’t tell you another game. There’s not one game I could tell you how it went today. But if the Saints were playing, I would have known.”
Rex and Rob posed for photos before the game with their father, Buddy, the longtime NFL coach.
Rob’s defense had no answer for the Jets’ rushing attack and it made the difference in the game. The two brothers embraced on the field after the game.
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Injuries were a problem Sunday, and one, especially, could be significant. WR Jeremy Kerley left the game in the first half with an elbow injury that appeared to be serious. Ryan did not have an update after the game on Kerley’s status, but tests will be done Monday and the fear is Kerley could be lost for a significant period of time.
S Antonio Allen suffered a concussion in the game and LB Calvin Pace also left the game with an injury. Pace said he just got banged up and is fine.
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WR Stephen Hill did not have a catch in the game. He was thrown to just once. Over the team’s last six games, Hill has just 10 catches and no catches of more than 25 yards. While he did not contribute with a catch, Hill did throw some great blocks in the game.
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Rookie CB Dee Milliner bounced back from a terrible game against the Bengals with a solid performance. Milliner got burned once by Nick Toon, who dropped the pass, but outside of that, he played well.
Ryan has predicted Milliner will be the league’s top rookie cornerback by the end of the year.
“You guys see what I’m talking about with Dee Milliner? I think he was a little better today,” Ryan said. “The kid played his butt off. He’s going to be there. If you want to bet against me on a defensive player, go for it.”
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WR Josh Cribbs contributed in a variety of ways. He completed a 25-yard pass to TE Zach Sudfeld, had a 42-yard kickoff return and a 9-yard run for a first down.
“We’re so versatile on offense right now, teams better watch out,’’ Cribbs said.
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S Josh Bush said the referee did not tell him why he was flagged for roughing the passer in the fourth quarter. It appeared Bush’s hit was clean. … Saints RB Darren Sproles left the game in the first quarter with a concussion. … WR Marques Colston was inactive for the Saints. … TE Jeff Cumberland was inactive for the Jets.