One of the many interested observers for Monday night’s Jets-Patriots game is former New England safety Rodney Harrison, who now is a studio analyst for NBC’s “Football Night in America.”
Harrison, who had his share of differences with the Jets over the years, offered high praise for his former rival.
“I definitely believe in the Jets,” Harrison told The Post. “They’re a scary team because they haven’t played their very best football yet.”
One thing Harrison doesn’t buy into is the notion that the Jets are lucky to be 9-2 because of all the close games they’ve won.
“I know people are saying the Jets are a lucky team, but I don’t believe that,” he said. “They’re not lucky. Yes, they were fortunate in some situations, but they’ve made the critical plays in the critical moments of games.
“If the 2003 or 2004 Patriots were getting those breaks and making critical plays at the right time, they’d be perceived as a great team. But because it’s the Jets everyone wants to say it’s luck,”
Harrison called Monday’s matchup “the biggest game of the year.”
“These are two teams that traditionally haven’t cared for one another but definitely have respect for one another,” he said. “These are probably the two best teams in the NFL.
“The Jets have finally come to a point here they can go into any stadium in the NFL and beat anyone. That’s what they brought Rex Ryan in for. With Coach Ryan, they know they’re not just going to be competitive playing the Patriots, they’re know they can beat them.”
Asked whom he’s picking, Harrison said, “If the game was in New York, I’d pick the Jets, but I think with the confidence the Patriots have playing at home and them losing to the Jets in the first game — Bill Belichick is a mastermind at making adjustments and the Patriots’ secondary is completely different — I think the Patriots will win.
“If the Patriots lose this game they can end up having one of the two best records in the AFC and still have to go on the road in the playoffs.”
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Jets RT Damien Woody didn’t have to listen to the Belichick conference call with New York reporters yesterday to know what was coming.
Having played for Belichick with the Patriots, Woody said he knew exactly what would be emanating out of New England this week as the Jets go about their business and talk their talk: Silence with a side dish of smoke blowing.
“If anything, you’re going to hear a lot of praise, blowing people’s heads up with compliments,” Woody said with a knowing smile. “That’s what they do. I know what’s coming. [Belichick] is going make it like we’re the ’85 Bears. I know that’s coming. We can’t feed into all that. We’ve got to do what we do.”
Belichick didn’t disappoint, saying “the Jets do everything well” and praising the Jets up and down during his conference call.
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Belichick on Rex Ryan: “I have a lot of respect for Rex and all the things that he’s accomplished as a coach and professionally especially. Of course, Rob [Ryan] was here. I hired Rob when I came here in 2000, so even though I haven’t spent a lot of time and I’ve never been on a staff with Rex, I’ve been on a staff with his twin brother.
“It sounds like they have a lot of similarities and I think they both describe it that way. I feel like I know Rex through Rob probably better than just the amount of time that Rex and I have spent together.”