Ray Lewis would take Rex Ryan over Bill Belichick as coach 'all day'

Shalise Manza Young
·Columnist

As we all know, New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick can be as prickly as a cactus - and as huggable as one as well.

But if you can set aside your feelings for Belichick the person, there's no denying that Belichick the coach is one of the best to ever pace an NFL sideline. As head coach of the Patriots, he's won four Super Bowls and gone to two others. He keeps his players on their toes through detailed quizzes and is not above releasing a bottom-of-the-roster player to remind the others not to get so comfortable that they don't handle their job.

Rex Ryan in costume
Rex Ryan in costume

Buffalo Bills coach Rex Ryan, as a person, is the type of guy almost anyone would want to have a beer with: he's quick with a joke and not afraid to don a wig to get a laugh. He's known as a players' coach, making bold proclamations of success, though none of them have come true yet. As head coach of the Jets, he did lead his team to two AFC title game appearances.

Their resumes as head coaches would appear to speak for themselves, but for one former player, the resume doesn't matter.

Ray Lewis, who spent his career with the Baltimore Ravens and now works with ESPN as a commentator, said during the network's Monday Night Foobtall pre-game show that he'd choose Ryan over Belichick.

"I'm not choosing nobody else but Rex Ryan," Lewis said. "If you're asking me, Bill Belichick or Rex Ryan, I'm taking Rex Ryan all day, because Rex relates to players, as well as myself, more like a father."

Lewis saw Ryan in action for years, as the coach joined the Ravens in 1999 as defensive line coach, three years after Lewis was drafted by the team. Ryan served as defensive coordinator from 2005-08 before leaving to become head coach of the Jets.

Lewis' comments of course have caused a stir, though his ESPN teammate may have offered the best reaction:

Even former Raiders executive Amy Trask, now an analyst on CBS Sports and CBS Sports Network, had a strong reaction to the idea that someone would choose Ryan:

Only in Ray Lewis' universe.