THE FIFTH DOWN; Namath Regrets Estrangement From Jets Former New York Jets quarterback Joe Namath says at premiere of HBO documentary Namath: Beaver Falls to Broadway that he regrets not having a better connection to the Jets now.

Namath Looks Back, With a Smile The documentary “Namath: Beaver Falls to Broadway” features excerpts from 15 hours of conversations between Joe Namath and producers from HBO Sports and NFL Films.

For Belichick, H.C. of the N.E.P., Fond Memories of New York (Giants, Not Jets) The two Super Bowl coaches, Bill Belichick and Tom Coughlin, have a friendship that stretches back to their years as assistants with the Giants.

Jets’ Strife? Woody Johnson Doesn’t See It Woody Johnson’s detached reaction to the Jets’ fall added another layer to the team’s off-season narrative of dysfunction and confusion.

Tomlinson Sheds Further Light on Jets’ Turmoil In an interview on Showtime’s “Inside the NFL,” LaDainian Tomlinson said that the feud between Santonio Holmes and Mark Sanchez was so intense that he doubted whether they could co-exist next season.

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Hamilton Puts 13th Season on the Front Burner Bobby Hamilton will turn 36 in two weeks, but he still can cook."Glenn Foley had a recipe book when he was here," the ageless defensive end said, recalling the charity venture of the Jets' red-headed quarterback of the late Nineties. "All the players put their recipes in, and I had my deep-fried turkey recipe. It's a great feeling to have one of those in a book like that."

Jets, Soldiers Join Forces Pockets of New York Jets fans thrive all over, in southern Florida and northern California and even in red-white-and-blue Patriots country in the middle of Massachusetts.

Pennington Progress Continues atMinicampChad Pennington has looked very sharp in minicamp. His impressive play has been a byproduct of both an entire off-season to work on his body and his familiarity with the Jets’ offensive system.

Jets, Soldiers Join Forces

Pockets of New York Jets fans thrive all over, in southern Florida and northern California and even in red-white-and-blue Patriots country in the middle of Massachusetts.

And now there could be a Green & White grass roots movement springing up near Fayetteville, N.C., at Fort Bragg.

"It's probably a little too soon to say that, but I believe the Jets will become a Fort Bragg team," said Sgt. 1st Class Roberto "Tico" Skelt of the 3rd Special Forces Group.

Staff Sgt. Troy Banks, a Rangers instructor for the 82nd Airborne Division, concurred.

"I played football from third grade to seventh grade, then I quit playing and got into soccer. Now I'm a really a baseball fan," Banks said. "But after this, I definitely will start following the Jets."

Banks, Skelt and eight other soldiers from the North Carolina base were still taking in Friday's afternoon minicamp practice on the upper grass field at the Jets' training complex. The session was winding down with small groups of players working overtime after head coach Eric Mangini had sent most of his team to the locker room.

But the visitors were watching the players as more than just fans. All 10 had just helped get the Jets ready for the season ahead by participating in drills during both Friday practices.

Helmetless and wearing their camo clothes and sand-colored boots, they came from the sidelines when called to catch passes from Chad Pennington and Kellen Clemens, field punts from Ben Graham and long snaps from James Dearth, and line up and run routes in play recognition drills on both sides of the ball.

"It's been pretty exciting," said Skelt, who bears a passing resemblance to Steve Martin — no, not the comedian but the former Jets DT. "I played some defensive line in some of their drills. It's been a long time since I did anything like this. The last time I played football was in high school and I'm 34 now. I'll let you do the math."

The soldiers not only participated in practice but also sat in on position meetings. And today they accompanied the team when Mangini changed up the schedule for the final day of camp and took his players to a "team-building exercise" at an undisclosed location.

Mangini has a friend at Fort Bragg and an obvious respect for the military.

"I thought it would be a nice opportunity for them to visit here and see the types of things we do and give us a chance to interact with them as well," Mangini explained. "They're really, really good people. Obviously we can't thank them enough for all they do for us each and every day, and I'm not just talking about the organization but for everybody across the nation. It’s so great to have them here."

As much respect as Mangini has for them, we don't think he found any Jesse Pellot-Rosas in the group and that Mike Tannenbaum will be signing anyone in advance of training camp. But they were doing their part in the practices, as you would expect from Special Forces and Army Rangers.

And they are coming away with a new perspective on these players that they'd previously seen performing their crafts on television.

"It's just amazing what Coach Mangini has done with them," Skelt said. "These are the top 1 percent of football players. It's just amazing to see what their work day entails. I didn't know it was like this."

"What's surprising to me," Banks said, "is that the athletes at this level are just ordinary people who put their pants on the same way we do."

Of course, it could be argued that Banks, Skelt and their brothers are as unordinary as the Jets and the rest of the NFL are. Regardless, for a few days these two elite groups with their different skill sets got together and helped each other in small ways to prepare for the future.