NFL Fines Jets' Rex Ryan $75K For Halftime F-Bomb
NEW YORK (WFAN/AP) -- Jets coach Rex Ryan has been fined $75,000 by the NFL for using profanity while angrily responding to a fan at at halftime of the team's 37-16 loss to the Patriots in Week 10.
The 49-second video shot by a fan at MetLife Stadium, shows the Jets walking off the field and someone yelling: "Hey, Rex, Belichick is better than you," referring to Patriots coach Bill Belichick. Ryan looks up and tells the fan to "shut up" while using an obscenity.
"I obviously, you know, made a mistake," Ryan said last Monday. "I was full of emotion and just popped off, and obviously I know I represent the National Football League and I know I represent the Jets. I know it was a mistake and I apologize. This is who I am. I made a mistake."
Jets general manager Mike Tannenbaum said in a statement that he and Ryan discussed the incident.
"He knows that his behavior was not acceptable," Tannenbaum said.
Ryan was fined $50,000 by the Jets in February 2010 after he was caught on a cellphone camera giving the middle finger to a fan during a mixed martial arts event in Florida.
The latest incident came moments after Ryan was infuriated that quarterback Mark Sanchez called a timeout just before scoring a touchdown that gave the Jets a brief lead. The timeout left Tom Brady and the Patriots plenty of time to march downfield for a score to go ahead 13-9. Ryan said there was a miscommunication on the timeout, but told NBC it was "the stupidest thing in football history."
A few minutes later, an angry Ryan took exception to the fan's comment.
"I'm about as big a competitor as there is, and at that time, I was in no mood to hear anything," Ryan said. "But I also understand that I've got to handle that better."
Ryan, known for his bold and brash comments, said he "makes mistakes all the time" and isn't "perfect by any stretch," as shown by the latest incident.
"Sometimes," he said, "my emotions get the best of me."
Is a $75K fine too harsh? Sound off in the comments below...
Watch the video (Warning: graphic language).
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