When Jets coach Rex Ryan stepped on a scale a few days before the 2009 AFC Championship Game, he was shocked -- and frightened -- by the number: 348 pounds.

Ryan underwent lap-band surgery and, more than two years later, he happily announced Thursday that he has dropped 106 pounds. Now at 242, Ryan actually weighs less than Tim Tebow, his backup quarterback.

"I think we look real similar, except he's left-handed and I'm right-handed," Ryan said jokingly during a media blitz to promote lap-band surgery.

The always-upbeat Ryan, 49, was in a particularly good mood. His waistline is shrinking -- from 48 inches to 38 -- but his enthusiasm isn't. Training camp is less than a week away, and he's looking forward to erasing the memory of a disappointing 8-8 season in 2011.

"I think I've looked forward to this season probably more than any season I've had in my life," he told a handful of beat writers. "I have something to prove. Shoot, I'm excited about it."

Ryan came under heavy scrutiny after last season, when he admitted he "lost the pulse" of his team; the Jets collapsed in December amid locker-room unrest. It was Ryan's first go-round with adversity after reaching the AFC title game in his first two seasons leading the team.

Conceding that his ballyhooed Super Bowl guarantee before last season was a bad idea, Ryan has toned down the bravado. There's less talk -- and less Ryan, for that matter.

Less is more for Rex Ryan: 106 pounds lighter, 10 fewer inches at the waist and cholesterol below 150. US Presswire/Getty Images

The man who used to devour 12 tacos in one sitting now shares an entree with his wife when they go out to dinner. His cholesterol is below 150, he said, and his blood pressure is 120 over 75.

The only negative to the weight loss, Ryan joked, is that he's had to discard most of his clothes. The only thing that still fits? His socks.

"I obviously look a lot better," he said. "I may not be a box of chocolates, but I look a hell of a lot better than I did."

Naturally, he gets razzed by his players, who say he has "buggy whips" for arms. His oldest son, Payton, jokes with him that he has a "six-pack."

"Yeah, I'll drink one," Ryan cracked.