03/03 — The Jets needed a left guard and they went out and got perhaps the best LG in the National Football League. Alan Faneca, a seven-time Pro Bowler who has spent his entire 10-year career with the Pittsburgh Steelers, will stay in the AFC but trade in his black and gold for green and white.

“It was a gut decision, the overall feeling that I had talking with Coach Mangini and getting a sense of where the organization was going and headed,” he said moments ago. “It really felt it was the right spot for me to be in — for me and my family.”

Faneca, who turned 31 in December, is a durable lineman who hasn’t missed a game since the 2001 season. The 6’5”, 307-pounder was the only guard who made the Steelers' 75th Season Anniversary Team.

In Faneca, the Jets get a proven vet who will station himself between C Nick Mangold and LT D’Brickashaw Ferguson. Both young linemen were first-round picks by the Jets in 2006 and will be entering their third NFL campaign next fall.

The Steelers struggled up front last year but that had nothing to do with Faneca’s performance. In fact, QB Ben Roethlisberger went to management in the off-season and offered a sales pitch to keep Faneca in the 'Burgh.

“They know how valuable he is," said the quarterback.

Faneca knew this day would come. He wanted a contract extension before last season but the two sides couldn’t make headway, leading him to say ’07 would be his last season in Pittsburgh.

Despite skipping off-season workouts, Faneca turned in another solid campaign. Head coach Mike Tomlin expected as much when he was asked about him in July.

"You don't play football the way he plays football without being a professional,” Tomlin told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “I think ultimately your character shows through. It's obvious when you turn the tape on what his football character is about."

The Jets won’t have to turn the tape on because they’ll see Faneca on the field next to Mangold and 'Brick. He’ll be an asset both in protection and on the ground as the Jets look to improve on their 25th-ranked aerial assault (188.4 yards per game) and their 19th-ranked rushing attack (106.3 yards per game).

And Faneca’s a gamer. He’s started 153 of the 158 contests he’s been in — that's two missed games in 10 years. He's going to buckle the chin strap, engage each week and battle like a warrior. Give him that jersey.

Note: Faneca literally just signed his contract and is talking with reporters via conference call. Randy’s going to drop in later this afternoon with a feature on the Jets' newest lineman.