Rex Ryan's father, Buddy, is fighting cancer.
Rex Ryan told The Daily News at the league meetings in New Orleans that his father was diagnosed with cancer "a couple of weeks ago" and Tuesday was at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York to receive a second opinion.
Buddy Ryan is a legend in his own right. He established himself as one of the best assistant coaches he league has ever seen. He served as an assistant on Minnesota Vikings Super Bowl teams and won championships as a defensive assistant on the Chicago Bears' legendary 1985 squad and of course the Super Bowl III New York Jets. He is credited with developing the 46 defense. He also clearly passed on quite a bit of knowledge to his son as well as a boastful persona.
All the best to Rex's dad. When Rex got the job, Buddy told his son not to mess up because the Jets are his team. Hopefully Buddy can watch his son win it all in New York this year like he did all those years ago.