Ah, yes, the NFL media machine is at it once again. To nobody’s surprise, the headlines are turning sillier on the first weekend without football.

Contrary to many digital headlines claiming former New York Jets head coach Rex Ryan almost became the New York Giants’ defensive coordinator under John Harbaugh, there’s no evidence to suggest that’s the case.

Courtesy of an excerpt from The Athletic’s Ian O’Connor, aggregators are blowing a short Ryan-related snippet out of proportion.

“I talked to Rex about that job at length,” Harbaugh told O’Connor. “Rex is a guy I love and have a lot of respect for.”

The entire topic was born from Harbaugh’s initial WFAN spot after taking the Giants gig. While with Evan and Tiki, the hosts hit him with the Rex Ryan-specific question.

Hey, it makes sense. Ryan coached under Harbaugh while with the Baltimore Ravens. At the same time, the duo shared just one season of coaching together.

One.

Rex was on the coaching staff when the Ravens hired Harbaugh in 2008. Just a year later, the Jets tabbed the second-generation Ryan as the team’s next coach — after a sudden fallout between chairman Woody Johnson and previous head man Eric Mangini.

Understanding the link, along with the idea that anything Jets-Giants at once is appealing — especially for New York sports radio — the WFAN hosts asked Harbaugh about the possibility of Rex.

For those who heard the spot, skepticism runs deep about how seriously Harbaugh took the suggestion. Hey, it makes all the sense in the world considering Ryan’s background.

A long time away

Folks, Rex Ryan hasn’t coached in the NFL since 2016. Those claiming a media talking head can easily keep up with the fast-moving changes in this league have no idea what they’re saying.

That’s not to say Rex (or anybody else) cannot keep up, but following from the sideline is worlds different than actively coaching from within the trenches (on an active NFL coaching staff). This doesn’t even include the stylistic reality that makes it tougher for an old-school pressure coach like Rex in the modern league, where longer-developing blitzes have an impossible time of hitting home in a quicker-passing landscape.

From an actual interview standpoint, there was never any mention of the Giants interviewing Rex. Instead, names like former Rex disciple Jim Leonhard, Anthony Weaver, and Daronte Jones emerged more concretely, whereas Dennard Wilson was hired.

Then again, unlike the Jets, whose in-house media and social media team announced Aaron Glenn’s official interviewees, no such activity took place in Giants land under Harbaugh. Therefore, how “official” any of this stuff is remains in serious doubt.

No tangible evidence

At the end of the day, of course, it’s possible that John Harbaugh seriously considered the former New York Jets head coach for the job. Yet, nothing the man said on WFAN or to Ian O’Connor suggests, in the very least, that Rex Ryan was even close to taking the job.

Harbaugh simply “talked to Rex about that job at length.” It makes no mention of Rex as a serious consideration for the position. This hardly gives pro football headlines a green light to suggest that Rex nearly became Harbaugh’s defensive coordinator.

Those who know, simply know.

A man like John Harbaugh, a tremendously buttoned-up coach who takes personal relationships seriously, would never leave one of his former underbosses out in the cold. When a coach can help a buddy by publicly mentioning his name, while also having a private conversation that cannot hurt in any way, it’s par for the course.

This is especially true when asked specifically about a man on WFAN.

Until tangible evidence to the contrary surfaces, no, Rex Ryan did not almost become the Giants’ defensive coordinator. There’s absolutely nothing to suggest that’s the case.