CLEVELAND — Brett Favre held up his new green jersey, hoping he made the right decision.

"To a certain degree, I don't know what I'm getting into," he said.

Favre's summertime soap opera ended Wednesday night when the Green Bay Packers traded their iconic quarterback after 16 seasons to the New York Jets, who haven't had a star of No. 4's stature since the days Joe Namath was slinging passes.

"I'm here for one reason. Not to do commercials, Broadway all those things," Favre said yesterday after joining New York for its exhibition opener in Cleveland. "I'm here to help the Jets win."

It's not certain when the three-time MVP will be ready to play. But he assured it will be soon.

"I'm a little out of shape, compared to the other guys," said Favre, who winked while saying he looked forward to his first conditioning test with the Jets. "The last 24 hours have been crazy. This offseason has been bizarre. But I'm excited by this opportunity."

Favre is expected to practice for the first time today.

Meanwhile, tight end A.J. Schable was taken from the field on a stretcher and hospitalized after a head-to-head hit in the preseason game last night.

The Jets were awaiting results of tests, but early reports from the hospital were positive.

"He does have movement in his arms and legs," coach Eric Mangini said after New York's 24-20 win. "That is extremely encouraging."

FALCONS

REDMAN BEATS RYAN

Chris Redman has edged rookie Matt Ryan and will start at quarterback in the Atlanta Falcons' preseason opener tonight at Jacksonville.

Based on how often he has worked with the first-team offense in training camp, Ryan, the NFL's No. 3 overall draft pick, would likely be the first quarterback to replace Redman in the exhibition game.

Meanwhile, right guard Kynan Forney, a starter for nearly his entire seven-year career and University of Hawai'i alum, has dropped behind Harvey Dahl, who spent most of the last three seasons on San Francisco's practice squad.

ELSEWHERE

Colts: Indianapolis starting middle linebacker Gary Brackett returned to practice four days earlier than expected at Terre Haute, Ind. Brackett had been limited to one practice per day because of an offseason hip injury until last Thursday when he went down with what was initially called a hip injury and then changed to a groin injury on the team's weekend injury report.

Browns: Cleveland rookie linebacker Beau Bell had arthroscopic surgery yesterday to remove loose cartilage from behind his right kneecap. The Browns expect Bell, a fourth-round pick out of UNLV, to be sidelined four to six weeks.

Bears: Chicago first-round draft pick Chris Williams had surgery to repair a herniated disk in his lower back this week, team spokesman Scott Hagel said. The 14th overall pick from Vanderbilt, Williams was expected to start at left tackle, but those plans went awry when he left the Bears' second practice because of stiffness.

Broncos: Denver rookie running back Ryan Torain is expected to miss about three months after breaking a bone in his left elbow. Broncos coach Mike Shanahan announced yesterday that Torain, a fifth-round draft pick out of Arizona State, would need surgery. He was flipped while rushing during 9-on-7 drills on Wednesday.

Panthers: Carolina waived tackle Charles Spencer yesterday for what coach John Fox calls a "conditioning issue," and re-signed offensive lineman Rueben Riley. Riley spent last season on Carolina's practice squad.