Jets' defense is champing at the bit to face Raiders' rookie Derek Carr

Look out, Derek Carr. Rex Ryan's defense is coming.

For all the questions and concerns about the Jets' secondary, Ryan's defensive front seven will have one major advantage Sunday against the Oakland Raiders: Ryan himself.

The defensive guru is 7-3 against rookie quarterbacks. And that has his defense feeling pretty confident about facing Carr.

"I definitely think we can rattle him,'' safety-turned-cornerback Antonio Allen told Newsday. "We can rattle any quarterback.

"I mean, we did a good job with Tom Brady last year. But we can't dwell on that. We have to do the same thing we did to [Brady] to this guy. Give him different looks, just hide our coverages and get after him.''

Defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson flashed a mischievous grin when asked if his coach is champing at the bit to face a young quarterback in Week 1.

"Somewhat,'' Richardson said, laughing. "He is.''

The Raiders announced Monday that Carr -- and not veteran Matt Schaub -- will be their regular-season starter. Schaub said he was surprised by the move, but the Jets didn't seem to be. They highlighted Carr's ability to air it out downfield and his composure during Oakland's 41-31 win over Seattle in their preseason finale. The rookie, the younger brother of former Giants quarterback David Carr, led four scoring drives against Seattle, throwing three touchdown passes in the process.

"He was highly rated for a reason,'' Jets outside linebacker Calvin Pace said. "He's good throwing the ball and whatnot. The one game that he had against Seattle, I just think he showed some poise. It seemed like he had been there before.''

That's because Carr spent much of his life watching his older brother in action. David, now 35, was drafted No. 1 overall by the Texans in 2002 and also spent time with the 49ers, Panthers and Giants.

Derek, 23, knew what it felt like to be in an NFL locker room long before he outplayed Schaub for the starting job. And now he's determined to prove he can handle everything the Jets' defense throws at him.

"Rex Ryan has great blitz packages,'' Carr said. "He has a lot of different looks and me being a rookie quarterback, he'll probably show them all . . . I always expect a lot, and I will be ready for anything. I tend to overthink everything and over-prepare.''

Ryan said the Jets did their due diligence on Carr during the draft process, "so we know the kind of athlete he is. He gets the ball out quick, [he's] smart, has a live arm, athletic guy, has a good feeling in the pocket . . . So we were impressed with him.

" . . . Obviously he has the physical makeup and the skill set that [makes you] think he has got a chance to be an outstanding quarterback in this league,'' Ryan added. "And the bloodlines with his brother going through everything he went through and playing a long time himself, [Derek] probably has a better understanding than most rookies.''

Still, Jets offensive tackle Willie Colon said it's "pretty [gutsy], to say the least'' to start Carr against a Ryan-run defense. "I don't know Schaub's situation, I'm no quarterbacks coach, but you throw him into a hostile environment, against a good defense, things are going to happen,'' Colon told Newsday.

Brady, a future Hall of Famer, had a 48.24 completion percentage and a 61.5 quarterback rating against the Jets last season, throwing one touchdown pass and one interception in the two games.

So how will Carr fare against the Jets' stout defensive line?

Pace said it's impossible to predict how a rookie quarterback will perform when the lights come on "and it's for real.'' For that reason, the Jets expect the Raiders to rely heavily on their running game.

"So we just have to stop that and make him beat us,'' Pace said. "And we'll see if he can do that.''

To the Jets, that means one thing: Advantage, Ryan.

Said Pace, "I would bet on us every time.''