Justin Tuck defends Rex Ryan's style

Giants head coach Tom Coughlin is one of the more conservative coaches when it comes to not making any public proclamations that might hack off an opponent or two. "Talk is cheap, play the game" is the Coughlin mantra around the Giants, and his players generally adhere to that saying.

But it doesn't mean they don't think a different approach is a bad thing. Case in point: defensive end Justin Tuck (pictured) told me today that he thinks the approach used by Rex Ryan — the anti-Coughlin, if you will — works, too.

"Rex is a love-hate guy," Tuck said. "You either love him or hate him. But I definitely respect him. He gets his players ready to play, and he doesn't care what people on the outside say." 

When I suggested that some of Ryan's chest-thumping quotes, many of which are now being parroted by his players, make the Jets a bigger target, Tuck said that didn't matter.

"If he doesn't care, why should I?" Tuck said. "He's a target anyway. Any team that goes against him is going to want to beat him. It doesn't matter if he says, 'You suck' or 'You're the best player ever.' I'm still going to want to beat him. So he might as well tell the truth. God likes that a whole lot more."