EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Rex Ryan waited years for his first NFL head coaching job, and he came into it with guns blazing. He promised the Jets would win right away. He challenged a Dolphins linebacker, Channing Crowder, to a fight. Ryan said he wasn't about to bow down and kiss Bill Belichick's Super Bowl rings.

Last Wednesday, Ryan had his first conference call with the Buffalo media. He was

flamboyant and entertaining. He said he didn't give a hoot if anyone liked him. He said he

believed in having players who expected to win and were passionate about playing football.

By the end of it, most of the reporters in the room were ready to pull on a helmet and run

through the nearest wall for the guy. I was ready to do it without a helmet.

Ryan was careful not to say anything remotely negative about the Bills, of course. He

didn't call out Terrell Owens or say he won't kiss Dick Jauron's string of 7-9 seasons. Why

rouse a Bills team that seems lifeless and defeated. Why kick a sleeping dog?

Really, who would want to light a fire under a Dick Jauron team? Evidently, not the man

himself. Shortly after Ryan's exhilarating exchange, Jauron walked into the room and delivered

this soporific commentary on motivating players:

"You better have guys that are self-motivated," Jauron said, "because if you have to

motivate them, the odds are it's not going to happen for you."

Every coach isn't a cross between Vince Lombardi and Gen. George Patton. Mild-mannered

coaches win, too. But the fiery, motivational coach wouldn't be so prominent in American

culture if it were only a myth.

Everyone thinks he's hard-working and self-driven. I'm always suspicious of people who call

themselves workaholics, or insist that no one puts more pressure on them than they put on

themselves. They're generally the ones who are scared to death of pressure, the ones who need

a good boot in the rear.

This Bills team doesn't evince a healthy fear of failing, or a hatred of defeat. There's

more a sense of resignation and acceptance. That goes right to Jauron, the head coach, who

couldn't motivate a sugar addict on Halloween.

Jauron's wooden demeanor resonates through the entire organization. Why couldn't Lee Evans,

the highest-paid pro athlete in Buffalo history, be like Jacksonville's Maurice Jones-Drew,

who ripped the Jaguars' play calling and loss of offensive identity last week? Or why can't

someone in the front office be more like Chargers General Manager A.J. Smith, who recently

called his team's play "soft and bewildered"?

Opposing coaches don't kiss Jauron's rings; they kick his butt. Jauron has a career record

of 58-80, a winning percentage of .420. It's the worst record of anyone who has coached at

least 135 games since the AFL-NFL merger.

The Bills brought him back in the name of continuity. But if continuity is so vital to

winning in today's NFL, you'd never know it. Denver is 5-0 with a 33-year-old rookie coach,

Josh McDaniels. Did you see McDaniels' emotional reaction after beating his mentor, Belichick,

last week? You think his players aren't affected?

Last year, the Dolphins won the AFC East with Tony Sparano, a first-year coach. Baltimore

and Atlanta reached the playoffs with first-year coaches. Mike Singletary took over the 49ers

in midseason and turned them around. Then, of course, there's Ryan, who has transformed the

Jets' culture and guided them to a 3-2 start.

Continuity? Sure, when you examine Jauron's record against rookie coaches. Three years ago,

as a first-year coach, Eric Mangini won his first divisional game against Jauron and the

Bills. Rod Marinelli won 10 games in three years with the Lions. His first win came against

Jauron. Singletary notched his first road win against Jauron. Sparano beat Jauron twice last

season.

Do you think Todd Haley, the Chiefs' struggling rookie coach, has the Bills game circled on

his calendar?

Maybe the Bills will rise up today and pull off the upset. It will help to get back Paul

Posluszny and Donte Whitner, two of the more passionate Bills, though you wonder if they might

be rushing back too soon in a crisis.

They desperately need a good game from quarterback Trent Edwards, who has lost two in a row

to QBs who weren't first string at the start of the season. During the current three-game

losing streak, Edwards has been every bit as soft and bewildered as he was during his meltdown

a year ago. Now he's up against a rookie, Mark Sanchez.

This is where a coach asserts command over the situation. Jauron is running scared. He had

reporters escorted early from practice after reports leaked that the Bills were scrapping the

no-huddle. The Bills' PR staff asked the Jets not to transcribe quotes from Bills players on

conference calls.

It goes back to Owens' comments about not liking the no-huddle in his session with New

England reporters before the opener. The Bills felt Owens' remarks were taken seriously, when

they were supposedly said in jest.

You'd think Jauron would have better things to worry about than whether some New York

writer twisted his players' quotes. His job, for one. A loss today would make the Bills 3-13

over their last 16 games. It would be their ninth straight loss in the AFC East.

Try twisting that.