ESPN
A fake Rex Ryan Twitter account has been fooling NFL fans
An X/Twitter account posing as former New York Jets head coach and current ESPN NFL analyst Rex Ryan has been going viral in recent weeks. That account, however, is not actually run by Ryan.
The fake Rex Ryan account was created in November 2022 and has nearly 10,000 followers at the time of this writing. It only switched to a verified profile this month, however.
An X/Twitter account posing as former New York Jets head coach Rex Ryan has fooled some fans on social media
A post from over the weekend about an Ella Langley show in Baltimore went viral, leading to further attention being paid to the account.
Look, I’ve been around football my whole life. I’ve coached in Baltimore,won a lot of games, and seen some incredible performances But let me tell you something…Ella Langley had Baltimore in the palm of her hand tonight. As the kids say, I’m officially an Ella Fella. I don’t… pic.twitter.com/fVhnFIUJ1Y
— Rex Ryan (@RexRyanOfficial) July 19, 2026
I’ve spent my whole life trying to grow the game of football, and let me tell you something… the attitude shouldn’t change just because it’s golf. You don’t build a great game by pushing people away. You build it by teaching, competing, and making people fall in love with it.… https://t.co/vipRUuJNc0
— Rex Ryan (@RexRyanOfficial) July 23, 2026
After fooling some Jets fans, however, the account picked up enough steam that beat reporter Brian Costello looked into the matter with ESPN, who confirmed that the account is not Ryan’s.
Hey Jets fans, there is a Rex Ryan imposter on this site. I checked with ESPN. It’s not him. Carry on.
— Brian Costello (@BrianCoz) July 23, 2026
This is an issue that never existed prior to Elon Musk’s takeover and the platform and his overhaul of its verification system. This account, however, was able to purchase the blue-check and give the profile a sense of legitimacy that helped fuel the ruse.
Ryan, 63, has been with ESPN since 2017 and appears on Sunday NFL Countdown and Get Up!. During his time as a coach, Ryan’s most notable stints were as the defensive coordinator of the Baltimore Ravens, the head coach of the Jets, and the head coach of the Buffalo Bills.
The New York Jets’ postseason drought — 16 season — is so long that Ryan was the franchise’s last head coach to take charge of a playoff game when the Jets lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers in the AFC Championship on January 23, 2011.