FLORHAM PARK, N.J. — Kellen Clemens entered training camp thinking he had a shot at being the New York Jets’ backup quarterback.

It turned out Mark Brunell won the spot before the competition even began, something that took Clemens a little while to get over.

“Four or five days, and it showed in my play,” Clemens said Monday. “I went to the coach and I said, ‘Look, I’m frustrated. What do I do?’ (He said), ‘Well, you can’t do anything. Go out there and play like you can,’ and that’s what I did.”

Clemens appears at least to have beaten out Kevin O’Connell for the No. 3 job behind both Brunell and starter Mark Sanchez.

“I would say he’s got a pretty strong chance of making this team,” coach Rex Ryan said.

“Score!” Clemens said, tongue in cheek. “That’s a heck of a lot better than it could have been.”

Clemens has gone from the future of the franchise to trade bait — or being cut by Saturday’s 53-man roster deadline — in just a few seasons. The second-round pick out of Oregon in 2006 came to the Jets with high expectations, but appeared on his way out this summer after the team signed Brunell.

He still could be, despite the vote of confidence from Ryan. Clemens is due to make $1.1 million this season, a high price tag for a No. 3 quarterback.

“I don’t know all the games they play,” Clemens said. “I take Rex’s word. He’s always said he’s a man of his word and he’s going to tell you how it is. So, when he says, ‘Yeah, I think he has a pretty good chance,’ I feel like I have a pretty good chance. He certainly didn’t say that I was a lock.”

Clemens addressed the media when the team reported for camp on Aug. 1 in Cortland, N.Y., and said he expected to compete with Brunell for the backup job. A few hours later, Ryan shot that down, saying Brunell was the No. 2 guy.

“That was a situation where Rex and I had to visit behind closed doors,” Clemens said, “and just kind of try to get a better understanding because I was under a different impression coming in.”

Clemens has since put on a positive front, even amid rumors he could be traded or cut. He’s 11 for 16 for 116 yards in two preseason games; he didn’t play against Washington last week. Clemens is expected to get lots of time in the preseason finale at Philadelphia on Thursday night.

“Statistically, I haven’t blown anything away,” he said. “My percentage is good, yards aren’t real high (and) I haven’t thrown a touchdown, but how I’ve graded out, it’s been my best preseason ever.”

So, does he think he has been given a fair shake this summer?

“To be the No. 3?” Clemens asked with a smile. “Yes.”

Clemens has developed a good relationship with Brunell — “I can’t stand him. No, he’s a great guy.” — and the two talk about hunting more than football. He believes he can still be an NFL starter, but also wants to remain with the Jets, wherever that may be on the depth chart.

“The Jets have an awesome chance to win the Super Bowl this year and I’m excited about the opportunity to be a part of it,” he said. “I hope that I’m here and we’ll just move forward with whatever the results are come cut day.”

RENTON, Wash. — Impatience burned wide receiver Golden Tate last week.

That’s not a figure of speech, either, because he grabbed a Hot Pocket pizza roll fresh out of the microwave, bit into the sucker and piping hot filling squirted onto his hand.

Ouch.

Patience is something Tate has to learn, something that’s as true for his day job as it is for his late-night snacks. Waiting is very hard for him.

“I’ve always been a very, very anxious person,” he said. “That’s kind of what I’m trying to break myself out of, being anxious, being very impatient even when it comes to the routes.”

And his wait for an impact moment ended Saturday in Minnesota when Tate caught a 41-yard pass midway through the fourth quarter. It was Tate’s fifth catch in an exhibition game, but the first one for more than 8 yards.

“It felt real good to get that,” Tate said after the team’s light workout Monday. “It’s something that they know I’m capable of doing. It has just been a matter of time for me to do that.”

It’s just that it took more time than anyone really expected considering how much Tate stood out during the Seahawks’ offseason workouts.

Seattle evaluated Tate as a first-round talent in its evaluations, and he was the only player the Seahawks had rated that highly still available when Seattle’s turn came up in the second round.

The rookie from Notre Dame may be only 5 feet 10, but he was aggressive in the air and strong on the ground, a receiver who played more like a running back when he got the ball in his hands.

Here was a player capable of making big plays whether as a receiver or a returner. He was the home-run threat added to an offense that had only seven offensive plays gain more than 40 yards last season. Not only that, but four of those plays were to running backs and one was a fake punt.

Tate’s performance during offseason workouts showed that he might be the kind of dynamic threat this team had been missing. Seattle’s exhibition games seemed ripe to be a showcase for just what he could do.

But in the first exhibition game, he caught two passes for 5 yards and dropped another ball. In the second exhibition game, Tate didn’t play receiver until the second half and finished with one catch for 8 yards.

Turns out the learning curve for NFL rookies can be steep even when they’re as athletically gifted as Tate.

“He’s shown a lot of ability and in some things he’s just been really, really amazing,” Matt Hasselbeck said of Tate after the second exhibition game. “And in other things he’s a rookie … I remember when I was a rookie. It’s very difficult.”

Hasselbeck entered the league in 1998 as a sixth-round draft choice, competing to be the Packers’ No. 3 quarterback. He thought he played well through the minicamps and in training camp. Then came the first exhibition game, which Green Bay played in Tokyo.

“They might as well have been calling the plays in Japanese,” Hasselbeck said. “It was like I lost my mind.”

Tate isn’t a quarterback so it isn’t quite so overwhelming. More like a matter of working on the precision of his routes.

“He has play-making ability, but that’s not enough in this league,” said Kippy Brown, Seattle’s wide receivers coach. “You have to be disciplined. You have to be where you’re supposed to be when you’re supposed to be there. You have to run routes at the correct depth, and for the most part he’s doing a good job of that, but consistency is something that we keep working on.”

Consistency and patience because while people have wondered what’s taking so long to get Tate involved, Brown said his rookie is proceeding nicely.

“He’s getting there,” Brown said. “I’m really pleased with his progress. We’re right on schedule.”