Two years after winning a four-way competition for the starting quarterback job, Chad Pennington again finds himself battling for the right to lead the Jets' offense. And while he is saying all the right things, it's clear what he thinks the outcome should be.

When Pennington was asked which quarterback would give the Jets the best chance to win in 2008, he said, "I believe in myself. I believe that when I play quarterback, our team has an excellent chance to win. That's not me making it up. That's proven. That's on the record, and I believe that strongly. I believe in how I approach the game and how I prepare and execute."

Pennington, who lost his starting job to Kellen Clemens midway through the 2007 season, will compete with Clemens to be the starter in 2008. Pennington's record as a starter with the Jets is 32-29, although those numbers are skewed somewhat by a 1-7 mark as a starter last season.

Some observers believe that Clemens will be graded on a curve in this competition, because of his stronger arm and bigger upside. Pennington will turn 32 in June and Clemens will turn 25 that same month.

"I think that coach (Eric Mangini) is interested in one thing, and that's winning, period," Pennington said after a voluntary minicamp practice. "After you come off a 4-12 season, that's all you can think about. That's what's going to dictate his decision. ... Regardless of what I think or what anybody thinks, it boils down to decisions that he has to make as head coach and what direction they want to go in."

Pennington beat out Clemens, who was then a rookie, and Patrick Ramsey and Brooks Bollinger in 2006, and went on to lead the Jets to the playoffs for the third time in his career. He struggled in 2007, however, throwing 10 touchdown passes and nine interceptions. The Jets were 1-7 in his eight starts.

Clemens went 3-5 as a starter, and finished the season with five TD passes and 10 picks. He failed to give the Jets' offense the jump-start Mangini was hoping for, which is why the coach decided to re-open the job in the off-season.

Mangini said this eventual decision "will come down to the same sort of evaluation of who manages the game the best, and then also who gives us the best chance to win."

Pennington acknowledged that he and his agent talked to the Jets about a possible trade in February, but nothing happened.

"Everyone knows there were discussions at the Combine," he said. "After everything is said and done, this is the best place for me to be. Looking at the situation, I feel good about it. I feel really good about how I prepared this offseason. I really tried to take a look at some things, physically and mentally, to get better and to become a better quarterback so I can take new steps."

When asked if he was hoping to be traded, he said, "Not necessarily. As a player, you always want to know where you stand. As long as you get a truthful answer, you can deal with it. Whether you agree or disagree, it doesn't matter. That's what you always look for as a player, just let me know where I stand and we'll take it from there."

As for Clemens, he said, "I don't think there is any lack of confidence on either side. Chad has obviously been there, done that, and he's a good quarterback. I also have the confidence in myself that I can do it. It's a great thing. We're two very competitive guys, and this entire competition for as long as it goes is going to make both he and I better, which in turn, is going to make the Jets better."

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