After four days of hype about the return of Rex Ryan to Jets country, where he held forth on the bully pulpit for six seasons, the Bills' coach pulled a pregame misdirection play by failing to appear during the warmup session to mingle with his former players and friends within the Jets' organization.
He left a crowd of photographers and reporters hanging at the Bills' entrance to the field during warmups. It was a move that was thoroughly out of character not only for Ryan but for any NFL head coach. He didn't enter the field until just before the opening kickoff, and the reception was muted, marked at most by a smattering of boos.