Ex-Jet to Tebow critics: Be a man, put your name on it

• Hunter was traded from the Jets this August after a rough preseason
• He said he spoke out against unnamed quotes while with the Jets
• He's "happy" the Jets are struggling, because it gives Rams the upper hand on Sunday

ST. LOUIS – Wayne Hunter hadn't even seen the New York Daily News article quoting anonymous New York Jets players bashing backup quarterback Tim Tebow. In fact, he'd only heard about it minutes prior to being asked about it by a pair of reporters.

Still, the St. Louis Rams' offensive tackle, traded from the Jets this August after a rough preseason, had the same reaction as Jets coach Rex Ryan and used the exact same word –"cowardly" – to describe it.

"I get sick of guys doing that – anonymous. Be a man about it and put your name to it," Hunter said after practice Wednesday. "When I was there, there was a couple of guys that did it. … I spoke out about it. I hate that.

"It sucks because it's cowardly, very cowardly."

Hunter, again serving as a backup and extra tight end now that starter Rodger Saffold is back from a knee injury, is now with a 3-5-1 team with almost the same record as the Jets (3-6), yet there's a completely different feel at the team's facility, particularly after they nearly knocked off the San Francisco 49ers in an unsatisfying-but-encouraging tie on Sunday.

In Florham Park, N.J., it's borderline chaos in an organization perceived to be on the verge of crumbling. Here at the Rams' facility in the community of Earth City, there's a sense new head coach Jeff Fisher is building toward something.

Hunter didn't imagine it would be this way for the Jets. In fact, he honestly believed in the element Tebow would bring.

"When I was with those guys, the system that came in with (offensive coordinator Tony) Sparano coming in, you just felt a sense of success coming our way with the Jets," Hunter said. "It's hard to speak for those guys because evey team struggles. There are teams that come with super-hype and all of a sudden they're just being talked about so much because they're in the spotlight."

The latest anonymous-quote story certainly won't make the spotlight go away. It'll only make it hotter.

"But then Rex gives an open locker room," Hunter said of Ryan's allowing players to speak freely. "He's always believed that, so he's going to treat it like he believes he should."

Don't expect any sympathy from Hunter, who was as vilified as any Jet player when he struggled late last season into this preseason and was basically run out of town.

"I support the guys as my friends, but as a team and as an NFL perspective, you're happy that they're struggling," Hunter said. "It kind of gives us the upper (hand) coming into this Sunday."