10/03 — Larry Izzo has made his mark in the NFL on special teams with two AFC East teams that don't wear green and white — the Dolphins and Patriots. But with the recovery of the Titans' muffed punt last Sunday, he hopes he has proved that he is focused on making plays for his new team.

“I’m sure there are a lot of Jets fans out there that are not quite Izzo fans but hopefully at some point they will be,” he told newyorkjets.com Friday. “It’s my job to go out there and earn their respect.”

His accomplishments over the years demand your respect. Including the first three games this season, by the Jets' accounting, the 14th-year veteran has 258 special teams tackles in his career, plus 23 more in the playoffs.

According to Stats Inc., Izzo has 200 tackles, still the most by any NFL player since the stat service began tracking ST tackles in 1994, two years before he began his career. Since then he’s gone to the Pro Bowl three times, played in three Super Bowls and been selected special teams captain by his teammates nine times.

“That’s how I’ve made my living, that’s what I do," he said. "When you go down and make a big hit and the way it can really fire up your team, it can really change a game. There’s nothing better than that.

“Now I’m sure taking a pick to the house or sacking the quarterback is probably equally as great, but for me that’s what we play for is to go down and smack someone in the mouth.”

He’s enjoyed reuniting with ST coordinator Mike Westhoff, under whom he played for his first four pro seasons with Miami (not including '97, which he lost to an Achilles tear). One quality he likes in Westhoff is his “aggressive approach” that was so evident last week in the Titans game when the kick coverage recovered two fumbles, setting up touchdowns for the offense.

“Momentum can change with a play," Izzo said. "It happens in the kicking game and most NFL teams realize that and that’s why they put such an emphasis on it. A lot of games are won or lost on who had the edge in the kicking game.”

On the muff recovery, Izzo was initially blocked and pushed to the sideline by a blocker. He kept fighting and running, and while Brad Smith kept returner Ryan Mouton at bay, he dived on the ball, like a baseball player head-first into home plate.

You can anticipate that type of effort from the ST ace.

“That’s what special teams is — winning one-on-one,” he said. “When you beat your guy one-on-one, sometimes you beat him and the ball's going away then you’re not near the ball. But when it does happen it’s a nice feeling.”

Expect him to fight those battles again this week on punt coverage against a Saints unit that features Reggie Bush as the returner.

“He’s a guy that’s very explosive and can get to the edge and hurt you that way,” said Izzo. “But you’ve also seen success where teams overplay the outside type return and then he can take it up the middle. You have to have lane discipline and be aggressive.”

Izzo talked about going against Bush and other topics on Tuesday morning at 8:30 during his weekly segment on Sirius NFL Radio with Bob Papa and Randy Cross.

He may consider radio in his post-football career, but for now his attention is on getting an important road win in the Superdome vs. the Saints. If you watch Izzo run down the field, you’ll see him giving 100 percent every time, and you'll have no question that he's playing like a Jet.

*Special Teams Saturday.