Rex Ryan backs Santonio Holmes, rest of us furrow eyebrows

Chicago Bears veteran wide receiver Santonio Holmes will face off against his old team on Monday Night Football this week, and that’s one of the big storylines surrounding this week’s battle between the Bears and New York Jets. The Bears are 1-1 after being upset by the Buffalo Bills but defeating the San Francisco 49ers in what was an awful game from Colin Kaepernick, while the Jets are coming off of a blown game against Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers after a 21-3 lead had them in upset-victory position.

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Holmes has a good opportunity to shine against his old team, though he hasn’t exactly been great in his first two games of the regular season after receiving praise in the offseason. After a putrid performance against the Bills, Holmes caught just two passes of 20 yards and did not relieve enough pressure off of injured stars Brandon Marshall and Alshon Jeffery, with Marshall’s red zone play carrying the day.

Back when he was with the Jets, Holmes underperformed as badly as any player in this league, and he became known as a locker room cancer for his stupid remarks, especially when speaking about the quarterback controversy. These incidents were magnified a bit by the New York media, and he hasn’t given Marc Trestman any headaches in Chicago.

According to the Chicago Tribune’s Dan Wiederer, Jets head coach Rex Ryan shocked us all by backing the wide receiver who was once a headache. Ryan said, “He was outstanding. I really enjoyed him. When this guy’s healthy, he can be a game-changer.”

Most of us, especially Jets beat writers, are rolling our eyes, because it’s a little hard to believe that Ryan feels this way about Holmes. It’s certainly possible, though, and the biggest thing to watch for his Holmes’s actual play on the field on Monday night.