Rex Ryan didn't use any profanity, but he was upset with the play of his defense in a morning goal-line drill -- specifically, the second-team defense.

"I don't know what the deal is with the second defense, but they decided not to show up," Ryan said.

Here's what happened:

There were three live plays on the goal-line, and the Mark Brunell-led offense (the backups) scored all three times: Two runs by Shonn Greene and a catch by rookie FB John Conner. On one of Greene's runs, there was a huge hole. Granted, it wasn't Bart Scott & Co. getting gashed, but defense is important to the coach of the New York Jets.

In a moment of gallows humor, Ryan joked that it was their "Freeway" defense -- a specifically defensive call in which they let the offense score. (If you recall, they tried that last season against the Jacksonville Jaguars, but RB Maurice Jones-Drew outsmarted the Jets by taking a knee at the 1.)

Other Rex-isms:

1. Rookie S Donovan Warren, an undrafted free agent from Michigan who turned some heads in the spring, appears to be in serious jeopardy of getting cut. Asked about Warren's progress, Ryan gave a lukewarm evaluation -- and that might be overstating it.

"He's been up and down," Ryan said. "Today was a bad day." Specifically, Ryan said he busted a coverage on a flat route during the goal-line drill.

2. Ryan spoke more about the fullback competition between graybeard Tony Richardson and Conner. Ryan was given a couple of chances to say that Richardson, the incumbent, is a lock to make the team. But he passed, saying it's "too early" to make any roster predictions.

Ryan loves Richardson, 38, but he's nuts about Conner. Said the coach: "John Conner, one day is going to be a big-time fullback in this league." Stay tuned on this one.

3. Ryan remarked that he has been impressed with Nick Folk's kickoff ability. He didn't handle kickoffs last season in Dallas, possibly because he was coming off hip surgery in the offseason, but he has been putting them consistently in the end zone.

"I think he's going to have a great year for us," Ryan said.

The Jets don't have a kickoff specialist on the roster (not yet, anyway), so Folk probably will be asked to wear both hats.

4. Ryan talked a little bit about the New York Giants. Remember them? The Jets face them Monday night in the pre-season opener for both teams in the new stadium.

"I think it will be different" than the usual opener," Ryan said. "The fact that we're playing the Giants, and we play in the same stadium -- a new stadium ... yeah, there's a little extra. But it's not going to be amped like it will be for the regular season, that's for sure."