The free agent flurry following the signing of the new CBA changed the landscape of the playoff picture – on paper, at least. Now we get to see who will actually fit in with their new clubs and who will be a bust. The haves and have-nots are all on equal footing heading into Week 1 and at least some of the questions will be answered in the months to follow.

So without further delay, let’s spell it out for you – the only way we know how.

AMERICAN FOOTBALL CONFERENCE

AFC EAST

NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS – The class of the conference has had their difficulties in the last few postseasons, but that will change come January. Bill Belichick picked up two veterans in Chad Johnson (we refuse to call him Ochocinco) and Albert Hayensworth that have a lot to prove. Who better than Belichick to squeeze everything out of them? Tom Brady is the best QB in the league and gets ring number 3.

12-4, division winner, Super Bowl champions

NEW YORK JETS – Rex Ryan’s bunch has been able to win road playoff games, but expecting Mark Sanchez to do it again and then some may be too much. This team needs a home playoff game to advance any further than they have the past two seasons, but have a big hurdle in the Pats to overcome. Sure, they beat them last January, but it’s not only a head-to-head issue.

10-6, Wild Card entry

MIAMI DOLPHINS – The quarterback carousel continues for the Fins, as it has since Dan marino retired. Chad Henne is not the answer and Reggie Bush’s exciting play will only mask the losing so much.

7-9

BUFFALO BILLS – Tyler Thigpen will eventually take Ryan Fitzpatrick’s job but is it really going to make much of a difference?

4-12

AFC NORTH

BALTIMORE RAVENS – The bruising Ravens will go at it tooth and nail with the Steelers again, but this time they will get passed them in the playoffs. Ray Rice is on the verge of stardom and that defense will lead the way again. Lee Evans was a good pick-up from the Bills and should be an improvement over TJ ‘Who’s-your-momma.’

12-4, division winner

PITTSBURGH STEELERS – An unexpected Super Bowl run nearly resulted in a third championship in six years for Pittsburgh, who made one too many mistakes against the Pack. They won’t have to deal with losing Big Ben for the first four games this time around, but an offseason marred with some controversy surrounding Rashad Mendenhall’s tweets and James Harrison’s opinions will have enough of a ripple effect to make them take a small step back.

11-5, Wild Card entry

CLEVELAND BROWNS – A team on the rise, the Brownies seemed to have found a franchise QB in Colt McCoy and a truck of a back in Peyton Hillis. A tough division will take its toll on them, though. Four games against the Steelers and Ravens will hurt their overall record.

7-9

CINCINNATI BENGALS – A rookie starting QB, a shaky head coach and not much talent spell disaster.

3-13

AFC SOUTH

INDIANAPOLIS COLTS – Peyton Manning’s health will dictate whether the Horseshoes are contenders or pretenders. But either way, they will finish on top of a weak division. Kerry Collins is good enough to win with for a short period of time, but not once the playoffs begin.

10-6, division winner

HOUSTON TEXANS – Is this finally their year? No.

9-7

 TENNESSEE TITANS – A rebuilding year, but one with a proven veteran QB who has a bunch of wins under his belt.

7-9

JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS – Those last minute wins have ran out.

6-10

AFC WEST

SAN DIEGO CHARGERS – Phillip Rivers needs to have a deep playoff run to be considered a big time QB and he finally delivers. The Bolts need to prove that last season was a fluke and come out of the box strong.

10-6, division winner

KANSAS CITY CHIEFS – Will the real Chiefs please stand up? Are they the strong team that won the West, or a club that overachieved and came crashing down in the playoffs? We say the latter.

9-7

DENVER BRONCOS – Kyle Orton is not a flashy QB, but he can be more than pedestrian if given half the chance.

7-9

OAKLAND RAIDERS – When they went 8-8 a year ago, the Silver & Black seemed to be moving up. But they lost some key players in the offseason and will again finish out of the money.

7-9

NATIONAL FOOTBALL CONFERENCE

NFC EAST

PHILADELPHIA EAGLES – They have put together a hell of team but now must prove it on the field. Michael Vick is a dangerous weapon and they have added enough to an already talented team to come out on top in what used to be the NFL’s toughest division.

12-4, division winner

NEW YORK GIANTS – The G-Men have blown two potential playoff spots in a row and have enough question marks heading into the season to not disappoint this time around. With a thin receiving corps, they won’t be in the mix that late.

10-6

DALLAS COWBOYS – America’s Team is improving and will do better with a full year of Jason Garrett.

9-7

WASHINGTON REDSKINS – Mike Shanahan got his way. The ‘Skins dumped Donovan McNabb and Albert Haynesworth. They would have sucked either way.

6-10

NFC NORTH

GREEN BAY PACKERS – The Pack snuck into the postseason and went all the way. Aaron Rodgers put himself into that ‘elite QB’ conversation by getting a ring and will have another big year. It just won’t end with confetti.

11-5, division winner

MINNESOTA VIKINGS – Can they rebound after a miserable 2010 with Donovan McNabb at the helm? Enough to sneak in as the last Wild Card team in the conference.

10-6, Wild Card entry

CHICAGO BEARS – The year ended dreadfully for the them and Jay Cutler had to redeem himself by actually having a legitimate knee injury. They will be a competitive team, but miss out on the playoffs.

9-7

DETROIT LIONS – Yes, they are getting better. But these things take time, you know.

7-9

NFC SOUTH

NEW ORLEANS SAINTS – Drew Brees is the difference maker and the loss of Reggie Bush will not be that big of a deal. They will recover from that ridiculous playoff loss to the Seahawks and be a contender again. A return to the Big Game is certainly possible, but not another surprise win there.

11-5, division winner, NFC representative in the Super Bowl

ATLANTA FALCONS – Losing at home to the Packers in the playoffs didn’t look so bad once Green Bay won the Super Bowl, did it? But you still have to consider how bad the Falcons looked that night. They will take a step back but still make it to the ‘second season’ because of the talent they possess.

10-6, Wild Card entry

TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS – They won’t sneak up on anyone this year and that will be their downfall. Josh Freeman looks like a player and will be tough to beat one day – just not today.

8-8

CAROLINA PANTHERS – Cam Newton starting will make them a team to watch. But get used to the losing.

4-12

NFC WEST

ST. LOUIS RAMS – A team that made some big strides a year ago makes another and wins the league’s most pitiful division by default. Sam Bradford had a good rookie season and will again be the focal point of this team’s success.

9-7, division winner

ARIZONA CARDINALS – They will find out the hard way that Kevin Kolb is not the second coming of Kurt Warner.

7-9

SEATTLE SEAHAWKS – A Cinderella story last season when they won the division with a sub-.500 mark and knocked off the defending Super Bowl champs in the playoffs. Too bad Pete Carroll won’t be smiling like that this year with Tavaris Jackson at QB.

6-10

SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS – You know things are bad when Alex Smith wins the starting QB job again.

4-12

Photo by Bill Menzel

In the divisional round against the Baltimore Ravens, Roethlisberger played less than stellar in the first half and had to lead his charges back in the second. The Steelers pulled out the game and two big dropped passes by Ravens wideouts largely played into the 31-25 outcome. Roethlisberger’s line ended up 19 for 32 for 226 yards and two touchdowns.

A week and a day later, the Steelers hosted the AFC Championship Game against the New York Jets and stormed out to a 24-0 second quarter lead. Rex Ryan’s crew seemed lost and a young Mark Sanchez looked overmatched. A late field goal put Gang Green on the board before the break and they looked like a different team in the second half. Two touchdown passes by Sanchez and a safety by Mike DeVito (who sacked Roethisberger in the end zone) put the Steelers on the brink of an epic collapse.

The Jets defense perplexed Big Ben and shut the Steelers out in the second half, but the deficit was too much to overcome. Even with an ineffective Roethlisberger the last two quarters, Pittsburgh held on by a 24-19 score and earned the Lamar Hunt Trophy, setting up a classic match-up in Super Bowl XLV with the Green Bay Packers.

Similar to the Baltimore game, the Pack started fast and had a 21-3 second quarter advantage, which included a 37-yard interception return off a wounded duck floater by Roethlisberger. Of course the Steelers rebounded and made this a very interesting game that came down to Green Bay needing a late stop to hold on for the 31-25 victory.

“They did a great job of taking away deep things and taking away the outside,” Roethlisberger said of the final offensive series. “You’re kind of stuck with very limited options there with that much time and no timeouts left. We just had to try to do what we could do.”

Roelisberger (25 for 40, 263 yards, two touchdowns, two interceptions) was unable to do what Aaron Rodgers did. The Packers quarterback won the MVP Award with a memorable performance that included over 300 yards, three touchdowns and no picks.

Perhaps Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin summed it up best when asked to elaborate on his quarterback’s performance. “It was a losing one, just like mine.”

Photo by William J. Hauser

The brash talk that has been a constant for Rex Ryan and his wards was mocked throughout the season by all the critics, but he (and they) have backed everything up. What’s wrong with having the balls to say that you expect to win the Super Bowl? Any head coach that breaks training camp and tells even his closest friends that his team is mediocre and will not win anything has given up before the coin toss. Give Ryan credit for being so forthcoming, even when it seemed to be blowing up in his face.

That would have been Week 13 and 14, when the Jets dropped two divisional games in a row and looked abysmal in doing so. The 45-3 Monday Night dismantling at Foxboro was followed up by a 10-6 home loss to the Miami Dolphins that had ‘hangover’ written all over it. Things could have gone south but the Jets went into Pittsburgh and came away with a improbable 22-17 victory over the favored Steelers. They clinched a wild card playoff berth a week later, even though they dropped a road game to the Bears.

The second season has been good to the Ryan-led Jets, with them making it to the AFC Championship game for the second consecutive year. Mark Sanchez has four road playoff wins under his belt already in just two seasons in the NFL and can make it five if he and his teammates can pull off another ‘impossible.’

Surely the Steelers will be the favorites in the game on Sunday and should be. They are playing at home and took care of the big and bad Baltimore Ravens in the Divisional Round. Down by 14 points at halftime, Pittsburgh turned it around and made the Ravens pay for their turnovers.

So why are we finally going to pick the Jets? It seems as if it is destiny for them to continue this crazy ride all the way to the Super Bowl on February 6 in North Texas. Sanchez threw for three touchdowns against the Pats and had zero picks. The Jets defense stifled Tom Brady and the rest of the New England offense, sacking the perennial All-Pro quarterback five times, and the ground attack that was so essential at Indy was once again on track. Shonne Greene put the dagger in with a late rushing score (76 yards on 17 carries in all) and LaDanian Tomlinson added 43 yards on 10 carries and scored the team’s first touchdown on a 7-yard pass from Sanchez.

Defensive end Sean Ellis had two of the five sacks and linebacker David Harris had nine tackles and an interception. Once again, cornerback Darrelle Revis shut down a team’s top wideout, this time it being Deon Branch.

By beating two quality teams in the Colts and number one seeded Patriots, the Jets have proved that they belong. Now the underdogs will spend another week talking about the game to come and more than likely have the skill to back them up.

Photo: Bill Menzel

AFC WILD CARD

Baltimore Ravens (5) at KANSAS CITY CHIEFS (4)

This one could definitely be a mismatch. The bruising Ravens could have easily been the second seed in the conference and had the week off but will have to settle for doing damage on the road. Quarterback Joe Flacco has a lot of postseason experience for such a young player and the team added vets Anquan Boldin and T.J. ‘Who’s-your-daddy’ in the offseason to open up the passing game. Ray Rice has made Rutgers proud and is a quality back.

The Baltimore defense speaks for itself and has been their calling card for a long time. Old dog Ray Lewis can still bring it and will have his mates barking during pre-game huddles.

The Chiefs had a great season and took advantage of a mediocre AFC West to win the division and get a home playoff game. But they blew a golden opportunity on Sunday to wrap up the third seed. They could have went undefeated at home by beating the Raiders but their long-time rivals knocked them around.

That’s not the way to head into the postseason and the inexperience of quarterback Matt Cassell during the extra season will be a big disadvantage to Kaycee. Backing up Tom Brady doesn’t count and when Cassell led the Pats to an 11-5 mark  a few years ago, they fell short of qualifying.

If the Chiefs are to have a shot here, the running of Thomas Jones will have to be a big part of the game plan. That will be a tough task looking across the line at the Ravens.

No one wants to hear this, but the Chiefs will get over a quick exit due to their successful regular season. For the Ravens, this game means a whole lot more and they will be called a huge disappointment if they get ousted in this game. That won’t hapenn, though.

PREDICTION

Baltimore will be way too much for Kansas City to handle and home field will not be much of an advantage here. The Ravens march on.

Ravens – 24, CHIEFS – 7

Photo by Bill Menzel

On Saturday, the New Orleans Saints rebounded after a lackluster end of the regular season with a convincing 45-14 knockout of the Arizona Cardinals. last season’s NFC representative in the Super Bowl. Reggie Bush scored two touchdowns as the Superdome rocked and rolled. Not much of a surprise there, as the Saints were expected to dispel of a team that may have still been showing the affects of an exhausting overtime win against Green Bay the week before.

That evening, the Baltimore Ravens were ousted by Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts, 20-3. They took a two-touchdown lead at half time and coasted the rest of the way. Three turnovers did the Ravens in, setting up Indy to play host next weekend one game away from Super Bowl XLIV. Although they played extremely well in taking out the Patriots in the Wild Card round, Baltimore was clearly outclassed versus a well-rested Colts squad.

On Sunday, Brett Favre turned back the clock and led his new team to the conference championship. The 40-year-old former Packer and Jet threw for four touchdowns (three to Sidney Rice) to lead the Minnesota Vikings to the 34-3 victory over Tony Romo and the Dallas Cowboys. Jerry Jones’ boys may have exorcised some December (and early January) demons by winning their division and then dispatching the Eagles, but were never even competitive in the dome.

Saving the best for last, the game of the weekend came in San Diego pitting the Chargers against the upstart New York Jets. Given no chance to move on, the Jets came out and played the 11-win Bolts tooth-and nail. They trailed by a mere seven points heading into the locker room and were clearly the team ‘hanging around’ against a formidable opponent.

Jay Feeley hit a 46-yard field goal to cut into the lead during the third quarter. Then the turning point in the game occurred towards the end of the quarter. The Jets downed a punt deep in the Chargers zone and a few plays later, Philip Rivers was intercepted by Jim Leonhard. A Chargers personal foul moved the ball inside the 10 at the start of the final stanza, which set up Mark Sanchez’s two-yard touchdown pass to tight end Dustin Keller and a 10-7 advantage.

Sanchez is not the only Jet rookie to be making a name for himself in the postseason, as running back Shonn Greene had another 100-yard performance and a long run for a score. He scampered 53 yards to give the Jets a 10-point lead with 7:26 left in the game. San Diego scored with 2:14 left when Rivers dove in from a yard out, but Kerry Rhodes recovered Nate Keading’s onside kick. The game wasn’t decided until Thomas Jones moved the chains on fourth and one with 1:09 left in the contest.

Keading, the AFC’s Pro Bowl representative, had a forgettable day with three missed field goals (36, 57 and 40 yards), which opened the door that the Jets kicked in on their way to Indianapolis for their first appearance in the AFC Championship Game since 1998.

Say what you want about the Jets and their outspoken rookie head coach, but Rex Ryan will have another week in the spotlight to psyche up his charges. The strategy has clearly worked and this team is going into Indy believing in themselves.

When the two teams met up in Week 16, Colts head coach Jim Caldwell pulled Manning in the third quarter with a 15-10 lead. The Jets rallied against back-up quarterback Lance Painter and that began their ascent towards where they are today. Once again, the Jets will be heavy underdogs and that is exactly the way they like it.

Photo by Bill Menzel

But that is not always the case and teams that do in fact have something to play for lay an egg on their way to the postseason. Many of the mighty have fallen, but can hold their heads up at the end of the day because they have earned the right to live another one.

The New England Patriots, who already had the AFC East sewn up, also could have clinched the number three seed in the AFC with a win at Houston, but the Texans kept their faint playoff hopes alive with a 34-27 win. Unfortunately, wideout Wes Welker was lost for the season and quarterback Tom Brady is banged up.

The first-seeded Indianapolis Colts dropped their second straight after coming out of the gate with 14 consecutive victories, following up a home loss to the New York Jets with a 30-7 pasting at the hands of the Bills in Buffalo. San Diego, the number-two seed in the conference, held on to beat the hapless Redskins by a field goal.

The Baltimore Ravens clinched a berth in the next round by narrowly edging the Raiders in northern California, and the Jets closed out Giants Stadium with a blowout win over the Bengals, setting up another meeting of the two teams next weekend in Cincy.

In the NFC, New Orleans maintained the top seed even though they lost their third straight. Quite a difference from when they were challenging the unbeaten streak 13 weeks into the campaign. The Vikings also earned a bye with their 44-7 whitewashing of the New York Giants, who finished with only three wins in their last 11 games after a hot start.

In a battle for the third seed and the NFC East crown, the Cowboys shout out the Eagles – who are going in as the final seed – in Dig D, and the Cardinals took a beating at the hands of their opponent next week, the fifth-seeded Green Bay Packers, when the rematch comes back to the desert.

Photo by William J. Hauser

Speaking of the Saints (13-2), they have now lost two in a row in the dome after the hapless Tampa Bay Bucs (3-12) came back from a 17-0 hole to win 20-17 in overtime. Also in the NFC, the New York Giants – after coming out of the gate 5-0 – all but put their postseason hopes to rest with a putrid 41-9 pasting at the hands of the carolina Panthers. This occurred in their final game at Giants Stadium, with the grand opening of the still yet-unnamed new Meadowlands stadium opening up in 2010. The Panthers (7-8) have been out of the playoff picture for quite some time while the Giants dropped to 8-7 and left their rabid fanbase wondering what happened.

In Indianapolis, possible MVP candidate Peyton Manning was pulled from the game in the third quarter with the Colts nursing a five-point advantage. Back-up Curtis Painter was not effective and allowed the Jets to get right back into the game.

Not only did Gang Green do the unthinkable after dropping a heartbreaker last week to the Atlanta Falcons, but actually control their own destiny if they can defeat the Cincinnati Bengals (10-5) at home next Sunday night. The Jets (8-7) needed a lot of help heading onto the day and by the time they kicked off at 4:15, much had broke their way.

Miami (7-8) dropped a 27-20 decision at home to the Houston Texans (8-7) while the Steelers (8-7) took care of the Baltimore Ravens (8-7), 23-20, in the Steel City. All of this activity coupled with Jacksonville losing and falling to 7-8, the Jets slid up into one of the wild card spots in the AFC. Denver (8-7) lost by a late field goal in Philadelphia after a big comeback, but still can get in at 8-7 with tiebreakers.

Photo by William J. Hauser

Wilcox had his most productive campaign in 2006 when he started six of the 14 games that he played in and had 20 receptions for 166 yards and three touchdowns. Last season, he had five catches and two scores for a Ravens team that defeated Miami 27-9 in the wild card round and the Tennessee Titans in the Divisional round. Baltimore was ousted by the eventual Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers in the AFC Championship Game by a score of 23-14.

DANIEL WILCOX CAREER STATS

2001 – New York Jets (1 game)

2002 – Tampa Bay Buccanneers (0 games)

2003 – Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2 games)

2004 – Baltimore Ravens (16 games, 5 starts, 25 receptions, 219 yards, 8.8 average, 1 touchdown)

Rhein Fire (20 catches, 208 yards, 3 touchdowns)

2005 – Baltimore Ravens (13 games, 3 starts, 20 receptions, 154 yards, 7.7 average, 1 touchdown)

2006 – Baltimore Ravens (14 games, 6 starts, 20 receptions, 166 yards, 8.3 average, 3 touchdowns)

2007 – Baltimore Ravens (5 games, 2 starts, 6 receptions, 18 yards, 3.0 average, 1 touchdown)

2008 – Baltimore Ravens (13 games, 1 start, 5 receptions, 19 yards, 3.8 average, 2 touchdowns)

MuscleSport Radio can be heard live every Tuesday from 1:00 to 2:00 PM Eastern time onwww.blogtalkradio.comand all episodes are archived on Blog Talk Radio, MuscleSport Mag and iTunes.

Please feel free to join us and give us your opinion, ask a question or make a comment. Our call-in number is 347-884-8157.

On this episode, we will also recap the incredible Olympia weekend that included Jay Cutler making history by becoming the first bodybuilder to reclaim the title after being defeated. Iris Kyle made it four consecutive Ms. Olympia titles but Heather Armbrust is breathing down her neck for the top spot.

UPCOMING GUESTS

Tuesday, October 6 - FAME World Tour/BodyProud President and Founder Jeffrey Kippel will join us and we will be discussing MuscleSport Mag’s new strategic partnership with his organization.

MuscleSport Radio has enjoyed a steady flow of special guests since launching, with famous names in the bodybuilding and sports industry such as Samir Bannout, Bill Grant, Boyer Coe, Troy Brown, Ronnie Coleman, Gunter Schlierkamp, Leo Ingram, Heather Mae French, Cathy LeFrancois, Colette Nelson, Cathy LeFrancois, Dena Westerfield, Bill Romanowski, Tony Mandarich, “Leapin’” Lanny Poffo, Taylor Boyd, Steve Michalik, Dan Lurie, Emy Silvagni, Rae Holitt, Tom Terwilliger, Dan “The Beast” Severn, Kevin Levrone, Layne Norton, Randy Roach, Debi Laszewski and more.

Photo courtesy of Destined for Success Management, LLC

In the second part of the episode, we will welcome former Washington Redskins standout quarterback Joe Theismann to the program. After graduating from Notre Dame, Theismann played in the Canadian Football League for three seasons.

Four years after joining the Redskins, he became their starting quarterback and led them to a win in Super Bowl XVII on January 30, 1983. Theismann won the NFL MVP in 1983 and set team records for pass attempts (3,602), pass completions (2,044) and passing yards (25,206). He finished his career with 160 touchdown passes, 138 interceptions, 1,815 rushing yards and 17 rushing touchdowns. His playing days came to an unfortunate end in 1985 with a serious leg injury but Theismann stepped right into a broadcaster’s roll and has been a familiar face on football telecasts ever since. He currently works for the NFL Network.

MuscleSport Radio can be heard live every Tuesday from 1:00 to 2:00 PM Eastern time onwww.blogtalkradio.com and all episodes are archived on Blog Talk Radio, MuscleSport Mag and iTunes.

Please feel free to join us and give us your opinion, ask a question or make a comment. Our call-in number is 347-884-8157.

UPCOMING GUESTS:

Tuesday, September 29 – NFL tight end Daniel Wilcox (New York Jets, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Baltimore Ravens)

MuscleSport Radio has enjoyed a steady flow of special guests since launching, with famous names in the bodybuilding and sports industry such as Samir Bannout, Bill Grant, Boyer Coe, Troy Brown, Ronnie Coleman, Gunter Schlierkamp, Leo Ingram, Heather Mae French, Cathy LeFrancois, Colette Nelson, Cathy LeFrancois, Dena Westerfield, Bill Romanowski, Tony Mandarich, “Leapin’” Lanny Poffo, Taylor Boyd, Steve Michalik, Dan Lurie, Emy Silvagni, Rae Holitt, Tom Terwilliger, Dan “The Beast” Severn, Kevin Levrone, Layne Norton, Randy Roach, Debi Laszewski and more.

As far as first impressions go, Rex Ryan did quite well for himself on Wednesday. His first statement actually received applause, something that is not the norm at a press conference introducing a head coach in the NFL.

The former Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator commented that he was looking for the new president a day after Barrack Obama’s inauguration because of all the cameras in the room. With a smile, he said, “I think we’ll get to meet him in the next couple of years anyway.” Ryan knows first hand that the Super Bowl champions visit the White House, as he did back in 2000 when Baltimore won Super Bowl XXXV.

Things always look and sound wonderful on a brand new coach’s first day on the job. Even when Rich Kotite was named back in 1995, no one could foresee that he would win only four games in his two years at the helm. So take this with a grain of salt. But Ryan did say a few things that haven’t been heard in these parts since Bill Parcells went away.

“You’re going to see an attack team here,” he said and referenced that they will be aggressive on both sides of the ball and on special teams and that it will be noticeable on their first day on the practice field. “We will have an all weather offense, and that starts with the running game,” he continued.

He also gave a message to the league: “The Jets are coming and we’re going to give you everything we’ve got, and that’s going to be, I think, more than you can handle.”

Just who is going to lead the Jets as the field general remains to be seen. The first question posed to Ryan was about Brett Favre, who will turn 40 in September when the new coach’s rookie season kicks off. The former Green Bay Packer had a rough last five games this past season and may require surgery to repair a torn biceps muscle, that is, if he decides to play another season or finally retire for good.

“I would think anybody would want him as their quarterback,” said Ryan, and reminisced about a game that Favre had against his Ravens back in 2001. Considering that was eight years ago, it really didn’t pertain to the future Hall of Famer’s current abilities, which have been greatly questioned. The Jets hierarchy of owner Woody Johnson and general manager Mike Tannenbaum has made it no secret that they want Favre back. It goes without saying that Ryan had little choice but to side with them if he wanted this job, if he honestly believes Favre is finished or not.

Sounding as if it were wishful thing, Ryan said, “He (Favre) may make that decision for us. We’ll look at it when the time comes.” The best-case scenario would be that Favre retires and lets the Jets know that right away. He has stated that he would let them know in February so they can prepare for the upcoming free agency period and NFL Draft.

The feeling is that taking over a team that had nine wins gives you a good opportunity for fast improvement. “There really doesn’t have to be a drastic change,” Ryan said, but followed that up by saying that there will be drastic changes in the style of play, particularly on defense.

Ryan also spoke of a philosophy that the team will have, which is a take on the K.I.S.S. (Keep it simple, stupid) saying. “Ours is a K.I.L.L. philosophy; we’re going to ‘Keep it likable and learnable.’”

Not what you would expect after hearing the word ‘kill,’ but words are words and actions are actions. And no one ever held the Lombardi Trophy with words.