Pete Kendall was on the other end of the phone line with The Post yesterday and there wasn’t a trace of gloating in his voice, not even when he was informed that his replacement at left guard, Adrien Clarke, is about to be benched by the Jets this week.
Kendall, who was traded to the Redskins at the end of training camp after a bitter contract dispute, made it clear how he felt bad for his former teammates and their 1-7 start.
“I’m disappointed for those guys,” Kendall said. “I stay in touch with a lot of the guys and I know they’re disappointed because they had high expectations. I was just in that locker room two months ago.”
Kendall, who’ll start at guard for the Redskins when they play the Jets on Sunday at Giants Stadium, said he doesn’t know what to expect when he returns.
“I don’t know how I’m going to feel when I come out of the tunnel,” Kendall said.
Kendall, who started at left guard for the Jets from 2004 through last season, has seen the Jets bench Chad Pennington for Kellen Clemens and said he feels badly for Pennington.
“I’m sure it’s tough on Chad because he’s such a competitor,” Kendall said. “I don’t think I’ve been around very many guys who work as hard, prepare as much, and care as deeply as Chad does. I definitely feel for the guy. You could never question his work ethic, how much it mattered to him, and how much he was willing to sacrifice.”
Kendall said he “wouldn’t have ever guessed” this Jets team would be 1-7.
“When I was there, I know my expectations were certainly significantly higher, and that was shared by every guy in that locker room,” he said.
Asked if he feels any vindication returning to Giants Stadium having had a successful season in Washington, Kendall said, “I don’t think the Jets ever questioned my ability to play.”
The Jets refused to give Kendall a $1 million “make good” raise from an agreement he said he had with management after taking a previous pay cut to help their salary cap. The issue boiled over before they finally traded him to Washington for a conditional mid-round draft pick.
“The opportunity to resolve the situation came with the Redskins, and I consider myself happy with the trade and I hope they are, too,” Kendall said.