Angry Rex wants to establish running game

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. -- Rex Ryan's pride is hurt, perhaps even battered and bruised, after seeing his team smacked around in successive weeks.

The Jets' usually brash coach seemed somewhat melancholy Monday, appearing to have more of a milquetoast vibe after Sunday's nationally televised 34-17 loss to the Ravens.

"Well, I'm bothered by the fact that I think we are a better football team than we are playing," Ryan said. "We are not executing as well as I thought we'd execute by now. It's just something that's on us as coaches, on me. I'm subdued, but there's probably a little more fire burning inside me than maybe I'm letting on to."

Guard Matt Slauson provided all the necessary insight into Ryan's emotions after the Charm City beatdown. "Last night, he was definitely kind of hurt, very emotionally hurt," Slauson said. "But today, he was ----."

So ticked off that he's imploring the Jets to fix their anemic rushing attack, which produced 38 yards on 19 carries against the Ravens and ranks 30th in the NFL. Through four games, the Jets have only 284 yards on 92 carries, an average of 3.1 yards, and two rushing touchdowns.

Mark Sanchez has dropped back to throw on 61.5 percent of their plays. A whopping 76.3 percent of their 1,232 yards have come via the air.

"We've just got to focus on the run and focus on it big," Slauson said, adding that the "Ground and Pound" is returning. "I don't think anybody's thinking any differently. I know Rex made a lot of comments today about we're going to run the ball. That's all we have to do."

Sanchez has been hit 25 times and sacked on 11 occasions, something Ryan knows must be corrected against the Patriots at Gillette Stadium on Sunday.

"The frustration is we all know Mark can be a great quarterback, but we've got to protect him," Ryan said. "We have to be able to run the football better and more effectively. It's no secret. That's what we have to do."

Ryan isn't planning any lineup changes, saying, "Shoot, how about we give Shonn Greene a chance?" He said the Jets must improve blocking on the perimeter and handling inside blitzes and stunts, even if they've been without All-Pro center Nick Mangold the past two games.

"We've got a lot of work to do," guard Brandon Moore said. "I don't think Nick being out is an excuse. We've still got to be able to do the job."

However, Moore cautioned against overreaction.

"Through the course of past seasons," he said, "there's been points like this when people say the ship is on the brink of sinking, and you come out of it for the most part and win some more games. People are a little on edge, of course. But it's only four games and you've got a lot more games to go."

That's why Ryan isn't about to lose faith in those championship aspirations.

"Shoot, no," he said. "We've got three quarters of the regular season still to play. There's no chance. I'm going to tell you this: There's one goal that we have and this franchise is going to chase. We're 2-2, a game behind the leaders in our division, and we haven't played a division game yet.

"So is it going to be easy? Nah, of course not. I've always said it's not easy to make the playoffs. But I think we'll be there, there's no doubt."