BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) - Before taking a few days off during the Bills bye week, coach Rex Ryan had a few frustrations to get off his chest regarding the Seahawks, and one of their fans who taunted Buffalo assistant Kathryn Smith.
Ryan rallied to the defense of Smith, who was the target of sexist comments from the stands. And he also took a verbal jab at Seahawks coach Pete Carroll during a telephone conference call with reporters on Tuesday.
Ryan was particularly upset upon learning what happened to Smith, the NFL’s first full-time female assistant during Buffalo’s 31-25 loss on Monday night .
Rochester’s WROC-TV filmed a male fan yelling, “Waitress! Waitress. Can I have a Pepsi, please,” at Smith as she walked along the sideline.
“Well, I think that’s ridiculous,” said Ryan, who promoted Smith to be Buffalo’s special teams quality control coach in January.
“I think that’s really classless,” Ryan said, noting he’s accustomed to being taunted.
“Now look, I get ripped all the time and that’s cool. I’m free game,” he said. “I’ve been called everything known to man, and that’s OK. I’m the opposing head coach. That’s part of the gig.”
The fan was wearing a Seahawks jersey with a No. 1 on it and the words “Our House” printed on the back. The video shows a woman next the fan slapping the man on his arm when he yelled “Waitress!” a third time.
Ryan also took issue with Carroll.
He responded sarcastically when informed Carroll was unhappy the Bills coach called Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman “an ass.”
On Tuesday morning, Carroll told Seattle’s ESPN-Radio that Ryan should focus on coaching his own team.
Ryan said he does coach his team, and then joked about forgetting to check with Carroll first about what his appropriate response should’ve been regarding Sherman.
Sherman caused several stirs during a thrilling back-and-forth game but marred by officiating errors .
Sherman was penalized for offside when he dived and collided with kicker Dan Carpenter during a field-goal attempt in the final seconds of the first half.
NFL head of officiating Dean Blandino said referee Walt Anderson and his crew made a mistake by noting Sherman should have been penalized for roughing the kicker. The ruling proved costly because an ensuing delay of game penalty against Buffalo eventually led to Carpenter missing a 54-attempt wide right.
Blandino also ruled Anderson’s crew should not have flagged the Bills for delay of game.
In the second half, Sherman made a play near the Bills sidelined and then exchanged words and attempted to stare down Ryan.
“I had some words,” Ryan said following the game. “I think I said that, ’You’re too good of a player to act like an ass.’”
Otherwise, Ryan was ready to move on.
“Obviously, it’s frustrating,” he said. “But it’s in the past now. It’s behind us.”
The Bills (4-5) have lost three straight and get an extra week to rest up before playing at Cincinnati on Nov. 20.
One player who won’t be available is center Eric Wood, who will miss the rest of the season after breaking his right leg against Seattle.
“That’s really, really a big blow to our football team,” Ryan said, referring to the eighth-year player and team leader.
The Bills will have to lean on either Ryan Groy, who took over for Wood on Monday, or Patrick Lewis, who has yet to play this season. Buffalo claimed Lewis off of waivers after he was cut by Seattle in August.
On the bright side, the Bills top receiving threat, Sammy Watkins , is eligible to begin practicing once the team returns to the field on Monday. Watkins was placed on injured reserve three weeks into the season when he aggravated an injury to his surgically repaired left foot.
Though he can begin practicing next week, Watkins is not eligible to be activated until after Buffalo plays Cincinnati.
Ryan said he’s hopeful Watkins will be able to play, but said the player has not yet been cleared by the medical staff.
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AP Sports Writer Tim Booth in Seattle contributed to this report.
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