Rumor: Announcement Rex Is Staying Could Come Sunday

Manish Mehta is apparently hearing that Rex Ryan is likely to be retained piggybacking an Adam Schefter story from earlier.

Indications are Rex Ryan will return as Jets head coach in 2014, according to team sources. Announcement could come as early as Sunday #nyj

— Manish Mehta (@MMehtaNYDN) December 28, 2013

Either way, the announcement needs to be made by early next week. The Jets need to get started on a new search or allow Rex to build his 2014 coaching staff as soon as possible.

This doesn't necessarily answer how firm the ground is on which Rex would enter 2014. Without a contract extension or even a one year extension to prevent him from being a lame duck on paper, he would face essentially the same situation he faced in 2013, needing to exceed expectations to keep his job. An extension of more than one year would put him on more solid footing and seem to indicate his standing in the organization is more stable. While not as important as the decision to keep him or fire him, the decision on an extension will have major implications for the dynamics of the near future.