Fans need to get off quarterback's back!

Darrelle Revis was on the field Sunday when he heard a sound familiar to a veteran pro, especially one whose team has been struggling: boos aimed at the starting quarterback.

The Jets cornerback recalled hearing them when Chad Pennington was here, and again for Brett Favre.

So why did he say yesterday that he found the crowd's reaction "shocking," "surprising," "disappointing" and "unfair?"

Because it was during pregame introductions, before Mark Sanchez had thrown an errant pass at MetLife Stadium.

Let's stipulate a couple of things before going further:

1. Customers have every right to boo poor play (or poor character), more so than ever in the PSL era.

2. It is dangerous to draw conclusions about large crowds based on the loud reactions of some.

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But razzing Sanchez as he ran onto the field, for a game he entered with a 5-5 record and with a resume that at age 25 already includes two improbable runs into late January? Really?

Is this how quickly New York sports fans eat their young?

Followers of the team have legitimate concerns about the state of Sanchez's game and his future. But this was strange, and illustrated fans' complicated relationship with the formerly fair-haired boy. That was why teammates were willing to do what almost always is a bad idea for sports figures -- and sports columnists, come to think of it -- and criticize fans.

Safety Jim Leonhard, who first raised the issue on WFAN Tuesday, and coach Rex Ryan took pains to praise fans for their usual support, with Ryan saying, "At the end of the game [Sunday] it was crazy how loud they were."

But before that he said this about the pregame booing: "I don't like it.''

Leonard said on WFAN that after the introductions, "As players, you kind of turn to each other and say, 'You know what? I guess we're in this one today by ourselves.' "

Bottom line: This sort of thing not only is unfair, it is counterproductive. Unlike his counterpart, the perpetually imperturbable Eli Manning, Sanchez is a more sensitive sort and even as he said all the right things Sunday and Wednesday, truth is he looked hurt.

When asked Wednesday about the booing, he said, "They expect us to win, just like we do, and we put so much pressure on ourselves. You can't let that stuff get to you. You have to keep fighting, playing for the guys in this locker room."

Then I asked him whether pregame boos crossed a line. He said only this: "Like I said, our mood is focused and there's nothing to do about that except play better. That's kind of where I stand on that."

To add to the gloomy mood, he also was asked about his work ethic after ESPN analyst Tim Hasselbeck questioned it. "I don't think that's the problem here," he said. "I'm working my butt off and I'm dedicating myself to this."

Sanchez was subdued as he spoke. So I asked if he is having as much fun as in the past and got this indirect answer: "Honestly, it sounds crazy, but things are looking up . . . I'm feeling more and more comfortable and it's not shown yet but I know it will. We're right there."

Perhaps it's just as well the Jets and their fans get a break from one another as the team plays at the Redskins this week.

Before Sunday, the previous time they played at home Ryan cursed at a heckler and Bart Scott critiqued fans' negativity. "Our fans sometimes have mixed feelings," Revis said, trying to be diplomatic. "They always did and they always will. And that's probably with anybody's fans."

Revis said Sanchez is "a strong dude," and has not seen any sign he is down. But just in case . . . "It's a matter of us helping him deal with it and lifting him up so he doesn't go in the tank," Revis said. "I think that's the biggest thing we have to focus on -- to make sure he is on top of his game and knows he has support, with us having his back all the time."