EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- Pucker up, Rex.

After six years of bluster and broken promises, it's time for New York Jets coach Rex Ryan to kiss Bill Belichick's rings. Why not? The rivalry is over, with Sunday confirming what we've known all along: Ryan can rattle Tom Brady with his clever defensive schemes, but he can't beat the New England Patriots because he has an incomplete team. It's why Ryan will be out of a job in a week, the culmination of a rotten season that almost certainly will cost general manager John Idzik his job, too.

Six years of frustration played out in one afternoon at MetLife Stadium, where the Jets endured their 12th loss of the season, 17-16. They were in position to pull off a major upset, but they self-destructed in a span of 52 seconds in the fourth quarter -- a small window into the core of their problems. Inexplicably, Geno Smith took a third-down sack, followed by a Ryan-Marty Mornhinweg disagreement on the sideline, followed by a wasted timeout, followed by a partially blocked field-goal attempt from 52 yards.

And so ended the Ryan chapter of the Jets-Patriots rivalry. It was an appropriate finish since it was so typical, the Jets wasting an inspired defensive effort because the offense stinks and the head coach doesn't use his timeouts properly. Same old, same old. Four of their past five losses to the Patriots were decided by a field goal or less. Sunday was just another re-run in a continuous loop of Jets heartbreak.

"I really thought it was going to be our day," said a disgusted Ryan, who probably has used that line a dozen or so times over the years in his post-New England news conferences.

This was another tease. The Jets were in terrific shape after Marcus Williams' interception at the Patriots' 30 with 7:18 left in the fourth quarter. On third-and-4, the Patriots caught the Jets by surprise with a new blitz. Smith held the ball and took a 10-yard sack. Instead of a potential go-ahead field goal from 42 yards, give or take, it was back to 52 yards, the limit of Nick Folk's range. To make it worse, the Jets had to burn a timeout because the play clock was winding down -- inexcusable.

"It was pretty dang critical," Ryan said of Smith's mistake. "You can't take sacks in those situations. Obviously, we botched the end of that as well."

Amid the confusion, Ryan had words with his offensive coordinator. You can't help but wonder if Ryan preferred a safe running play on third down instead of a pass. One source described it as a moment of frustration between the two coaches. The run-pass storyline has been simmering all season with Ryan and Mornhinweg, whose philosophical differences have been analyzed and reanalyzed.

"I'm sure we're at odds," Ryan said sarcastically. "At least, that'll be the story. We had to burn a timeout. I really butchered that whole thing. That's on me."

Ryan also wasted a timeout on an ill-advised replay challenge with 4:38 remaining, which came back to bite him when he had no timeouts remaining in the final 1:55. In the end, the Jets played well enough to have their hearts crushed, which always seems to be the case against the Patriots.

"It stinks," guard Willie Colon said. "Bottom line."

"It sucks for the team, the organization and the fans," Folk said. "It seems like our year for close losses. It's a tough way to go out."

It's a tough way for Ryan to go out, but this is the monster he created. Even with no-names at cornerback, he can devise game plans that neutralize future Hall of Fame quarterbacks -- Brady, Peyton Manning, Ben Roethlisberger, et al -- but Ryan has missed the playoffs four straight years because he has never developed an offense or a quarterback. Obviously, some of that falls on Idzik, who deserves to get fired. There are strong indications that he will get a pink slip. Owner Woody Johnson, poised to clean house, needs to formulate another plan for attempting to overthrow the Evil Empire.

Ryan is 4-9 against the Patriots -- one glorious moment (the 2010 playoff win) sandwiched between utter frustration. Ryan commended Belichick for constructing a team that knows how to win close games. Conversely, the Jets know how to lose. If it's not an ill-timed interception, it's a bad sack. If it's not a blocked field goal, it's a wasted timeout. Over and over and over.

Oh, but Ryan was proud of his defense.

"We're the team that always gives [Brady] the biggest challenge, whether he admits it or not," Ryan said.

Unfortunately for Ryan, moral victories don't lead to contract extensions.