FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- A livid Rex Ryan stepped to the interview podium, bemoaned the two plays that will haunt him for months (maybe longer), questioned the intelligence of his defense and released enough steam to fill a hot-air balloon.
He's a 1-6 coach with a six-game losing streak, and the raw emotion came pouring out of him after the New York Jets' 27-25 loss Thursday night at Gillette Stadium. Ryan needed to beat the New England Patriots to keep the Jets' season relevant, to give himself a puncher's chance to save his job. His team played well enough to win -- some might say it deserved to win -- but we've seen this movie before.
"We've been snakebit," Ryan said.
On this night, the snakes were Tom Brady and Bill Belichick. In this rivalry, they're always the snakes. Except for that playoff victory in January 2011, the highlight of the Ryan era, the storyline never changes. Over and over and over, the Jets find a way to have their hearts crushed by the Patriots. The seasons change, the players change and the culprits change, but the ending usually stays the same: Ryan, at a podium, lamenting one that got away.
"It was there; it was there for us," Ryan said.
On their last three trips to Foxborough, the Jets have lost by three, three and two points. When does it become too much for owner Woody Johnson to bear? When will he decide that he's tired of kissing Robert Kraft's rings? The Jets are headed to their fourth straight non-winning season, their fourth straight year out of the playoffs, and it would be an upset if Johnson and general manager John Idzik give Ryan another chance in 2015.
The Jets are toast -- soggy toast, considering the weather. Ryan understands the situation. He knows he lost more than a game, which explains his prickly mood.
"You figure out what our record is, and you tell me if that ties into it a little bit," said Ryan, stuck in the longest losing streak of his career.
The real kicker is, Ryan was undermined by his pride and joy, his defense, which allowed three touchdown passes and let Brady make enough plays to be the hero, per usual. They let the Patriots steal it from them -- again. They'd almost rather lose with a Butt Fumble than a last-second heartbreaker.
The Jets followed the "How to beat the Patriots" blueprint, almost to the letter. They controlled the ball for 40 minutes, 54 seconds. They rushed 43 times. They converted on third down (9-for-16). They contained Rob Gronkowski. They got a no-turnover performance from quarterback Geno Smith.
Repeat: There were no turnovers from their turnover-prone quarterback, who played a terrific game. The Jets did just about everything right, but they brain-locked on a few plays, and you can't do that against Brady.
Safety Antonio Allen made two big mental mistakes, blowing a coverage on 49-yard touchdown pass to running back Shane Vereen and letting his man get behind him on a 19-yard scoring pass to Danny Amendola, aka "The Invisible Man" in these parts. The latter mistake, on a third-and-19 play, gave the Patriots a 27-19 lead in the fourth quarter. It was one of two touchdowns allowed on third down, bringing the Jets' total to 11, a staggering amount.
Allen owned up to his errors after the game, acknowledging, "They were my fault." Ryan wasn't forgiving.
"We never played the smartest game in the history of the sport, without question, on defense in particular," he said.
Asked about the Amendola play, a fantastic, twisting grab on a scramble by Brady, Ryan turned sarcastic.
"It was the greatest route in the history of the game," he said. "We're shocked that he ran a route to the goal line."
Allen wasn't the only culprit. The Jets did other dumb things, such as wasting two timeouts in the third quarter -- one on offense, one on defense. Ryan didn't offer a reasonable explanation for either one, but the mismanagement of the timeouts probably cost them the game.
They had no timeouts remaining when Smith got the ball at his own 12 with 1:06 remaining. The Jets had to settle for a desperation field goal try from 58 yards, which was blocked by Chris Jones, the same Chris Jones who was penalized for an illegal push during the whacky finish in the Jets' overtime win last season.
Afterward, Belichick delighted in mentioning how it was "fitting" and "awesome" that Jones blocked the potential game-winning field goal. Ryan was in no mood to draw parallels and dive into the symbolism.
"Yeah, that's a great analogy," Ryan said facetiously.
Six years into this gig, Ryan still can't conquer the Patriots. This probably was his last meaningful shot.