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Play Like You Mean It: Passion, Laughs, and Leadership in the World's Most Beautiful Game [Hardcover]

Rex Ryan , Don Yaeger
4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)

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Book Description

May 3, 2011
No football fan will want to be without the book that delivers pure, unfiltered Rex Ryan—head coach of the New York Jets and one of the most popular, outspoken, well-liked, and widely respected personalities in the National Football League.

Rex Ryan is known for his exuberance . . . and Play Like You Mean It explores every aspect of Ryan’s amazing passion for the game of football, plus the lessons he has learned in leadership and motivation during his years in and around the game. In his own words, Ryan takes readers behind the scenes of the NFL as he shares colorful football stories from his experiences with the Jets and the Ravens as well as his years recruiting players, coaching college foot­ball, and growing up as a child of legendary NFL coach Buddy Ryan. Rex’s unique brand of enthusiasm and motiva­tion comes through on every page.

Most of all, fans will get insider access to Ryan’s headline-grabbing, brutally honest, and undeniably entertaining views on the NFL . . . and the very human side of the larger-than-life athletes who devote their lives to the game of foot­ball. From Ryan’s acceptance of the Jets head coaching job to his success in turning around a team that has long been number two in New York, from his drafting and believing in Mark Sanchez to kicking off the 2010 season with massive expectations (and a target on his back)—this book goes deep, and entertains on every level.

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Play Like You Mean It: Passion, Laughs, and Leadership in the World's Most Beautiful Game + 100 Things Jets Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die (100 Things...Fans Should Know)
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“Rex Ryan has extended his general approach—open, blunt, direct . . . from the spoken word to the written one.”
     —The New York Times

“Typical Rex: no-holds-barred and thoroughly entertaining.”
     —WFAN/CBS Radio

About the Author

REX RYAN is head coach of the National Football League’s New York Jets. He is the son of former Philadelphia Eagles and Arizona Cardinals head coach Buddy Ryan and the twin brother of Rob Ryan, defensive coordinator for the Cleveland Browns.

Don Yaeger is a former associate editor for Sports Illustrated. He is the bestselling author of seventeen books, including Never Die Easy: The Auto biography of Walter Payton.

Product Details

  • Hardcover: 288 pages
  • Publisher: Doubleday; First Edition edition (May 3, 2011)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0385534442
  • ISBN-13: 978-0385534444
  • Product Dimensions: 6.4 x 1.2 x 9.5 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #507,283 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

I recommend all football fans read this great book. J.S.  |  5 reviewers made a similar statement
The book is entertaining and of easy read. H. D. Espinosa  |  4 reviewers made a similar statement
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
23 of 24 people found the following review helpful
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
Being a football fan, and given the almost superstar notoriety - for better or worse - of Rex Ryan as he will start his third year as the head coach of the New York Jets, I thought I should give this book a shot and I am so glad I did it.

Don't expect an autobiography based on personal life, recent "scandals" (involving home made foot-fetish video by his wife) and other issues, except for two short passages on family and dyslexia. All of the themes revolve around football, more football and his passion for the game and the team currently under his command. Through the good and the bad, the easy and the difficult, a win and a loss, the book reveals the backstage of important moments (including recent 2010 season highlights, such as the ugly Monday Night defeat in New England and the table-turning performance of the playoffs against the same team at the same stadium months later) and what's inside the mind of today's most outspoken and cockiest head coach in sports. When planning and developing the season or each key game in individual, Rex offers every detail going through his mind, from options to decision. He takes every victory or defeat on a personal level and shows it.

Other highlights include the Hard Knocks season and his thoughts on Bill Belichick, Peyton Manning and other peers on the field.

The book is entertaining and of easy read. Specially great if you are a football fan - not necessarily a Jets fan.
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12 of 14 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Great for all football fans May 5, 2011
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
I'll admit up front, that I am a Jets fan, and my review is a best effort to keep my personal feelings and associations to the team aside.

Love or hate Rex, he can't be ignored. It is definitely a football book. Very easy to read, light heated, and fun. I think the most intriguing part was the stories about his father. Rex did a good job of clearing things up behind the stories about Buddy and some of the issues he dealt with. Albeit, its obviously skewed to save face for Buddy, I think it reveals a lot about the behind the scenes that the Media didn't portray or write about. Rex gave a lot of props to guys that were "at odds" with Buddy such as Ditka, Gilbride, and Jaworsky to name a few.

Rex give a lot of people the credit they deserve (Bill Belichick, Brady, Manning, et al) and after this book is more widely read, he should get some back. He has a true fire and passion for the game and he just happens to wear his heart on his sleeve. Any football fan can read this and think that this is what is going on in the mind of their own team's head coach. Rex just happens to spice it up with his usual colorful language and he isn't afraid to put it our there instead of keeping it behind closed doors.

Great info about the Ravens and his time there. I enjoyed the history lessons about other teams and how he worked with those guys. Great stories about Tony "Goose" Siragusa too.

Jets fans will absolutely love this book but ALL football fans will definitely enjoy reading this inside edition of Rex and might gain a better understanding of what every coach in the NFL has gone, is, or will go through.

I highly recommend it to everyone that is a fan of the most beautiful game in the world.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Great read for all football fans May 6, 2011
By J.S.
Format:Hardcover
Honestly, not a Jets fan but I like the bravado Rex brings to the Jets. In Play Like You Mean It, Rex talks about everything from his time as kid with dyslexia to being with the Ravens for 10 years, to how he became the Jets head coach. I recommend all football fans read this great book. You truly will enjoy the insights and stories Rex shares.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars gifted
Gave this to my mom and it arrived in the mail in perfect condition, even if I had to take 15mins to get it unwrapped and outta the box. I don't see that as a negative though lol.
Published 1 month ago by Angela Addison
3.0 out of 5 stars A composite of Rex
As a Jet fan who watches SNY and ESPN I found there was little new information in this book. It would be interesting to see what he would write after the 2012 season.
Published 6 months ago by oldsifiguy
4.0 out of 5 stars Know Thy Enemy
Rex Ryan is an obnoxious, undisciplined, loud mouth jerk just like his father. When I saw he "wrote" a book, I could help myself. I had to read it. Read more
Published 12 months ago by C. Baker
4.0 out of 5 stars Doesn't hold back at all
Rex Ryan is a guy who tells it like it is and will not hold back his opinion. His writing is like his interviews and coaching style, he will state his opinion and will back it up... Read more
Published 12 months ago by Peter
5.0 out of 5 stars Recommended reading for Tim Tebow
My five-star review is not based on the literary merit of this book. The writing is basic and the degree of in-depth analysis you'll find between the covers is rather elementary. Read more
Published 12 months ago by Roy L. Pickering
5.0 out of 5 stars Great book from a great coach
Open Honest read.
Pulls no punches.
Hard knocks in print form.
Rex takes you inside both his life and the NY Jets.
Published 20 months ago by LW Taylor
5.0 out of 5 stars Great book!
Great and fun reading! Rex Ryan always tells it like it is, and doesn't hold back. I enjoyed the book so much I bought a copy for my son. GO JETS!
Published 21 months ago by Michael D. Markovitch
4.0 out of 5 stars Worth a Read For Football Fans
A solid effort from Jets Coach Rex Ryan. Worth a look for hard core NFL fans. No big revelations, but I enjoyed this one.

Recommended for serious sports fans only.
Published 22 months ago by Joseph C. Sweeney
3.0 out of 5 stars Should Have Waited 'Til He Won The Superbowl
God knows I love Rex and the Jets but I think this book was premature. Rex should have written this book if and when he wins the Superbowl. It is written like a typical jock. Read more
Published 22 months ago by AFN1000
5.0 out of 5 stars REX IS THE MAN!
I am a lifelong Jets fan since 1981, and the fact that this is is the first book ever written by their head coach speaks volumes! Read more
Published 22 months ago by Will
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