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Ex-Jets still travel on Foxborough shuttle, seeking Super Bowl glory

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Harris could slot in as starter with Pats (0:46)

Dan Graziano joins SportsCenter to explain why the addition of David Harris is such a big deal for the Patriots. (0:46)

The Florham Park-to-Foxborough shuttle doesn't fly as frequently as it once did, but it still makes news on occasion.

On Wednesday, David Harris became the latest passenger, signing with the New England Patriots for a shot to win a championship before retiring.

Many former New York Jets have done it during the years, looking to score Super Bowl bling as part of Bill Belichick's team, but it's not a gimme. Harris, released on June 6, would be the seventh player to win a Super Bowl after going directly from the Jets to the Patriots -- but the first since 2003.

The old shuttle has hit a dry spell.

You're probably thinking about Darrelle Revis, a member of the Patriots' 2014 title team, but remember: He took a one-year detour to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers before arriving in New England.

Several ex-Jets found championship glory in the Patriots' early-dynasty days. From 2001 to 2003, Bobby Hamilton, Otis Smith, Jermaine Wiggins, Roman Phifer, Bryan Cox and Rick Lyle won titles immediately after playing for the Jets.

That fraternity shrinks to one if you count only homegrown Jets -- i.e. players that began their career with the team. Wiggins, a little-known tight end, made the Jets as an undrafted free agent before moving on to the Patriots and winning a title in 2001.

Only two players drafted by the Jets have won titles with New England -- Revis and Fred Baxter (2003), who played with the Chicago Bears for a year before landing with the Evil Empire. Harris would be the third.

He became the 19th player in the Belichick era (since 2000) to make the direct jump, according to Elias. That list includes Danny Woodhead, James Ihedigbo, Shaun Ellis and Chris Baker. Years before them, there was Victor Green, Chris Hayes and Vinny Testaverde.

Sorry, we're not counting Tim Tebow. He never played in a regular-season game for the Patriots.

Before Harris, Ellis was the most noteworthy Jets-to-Patriots jump. Like Harris, he was a longtime Jet (11 years), so his defection in 2011 was a stunner, although the circumstances were different. Ellis was a free agent in training camp and received only a low-ball offer from the Jets, who had just drafted Muhammad Wilkerson and were planning to start him.

"It seems like the Patriots love Jets players," guard Matt Slauson said at the time. "I think it's because Belichick up there wants some insights."

No one hated the Patriots more than Ellis, but he took the "If-you-can't-beat-em, join-em" approach. He came agonizingly close to winning a Super Bowl in his only season with Belichick, a crushing loss to the New York Giants. He probably still has Manning-to-Manningham nightmares.

"No loyalty," Ellis said during the run-up to the Super Bowl, referring to the Jets. "They preached that the whole time -- loyalty, loyalty, blah, blah, blah."

No fewer than 28 players have migrated from the Jets to the Patriots since 2000, including nine that had at least one stop in between. Of the nine, Anthony Pleasant, Baxter and Revis won Super Bowl rings.

Really, any conversation about Jets-to-Patriots flights should start with the original defector -- Belichick, who resigned as head coach of the New York Jets and became arguably the greatest coach in history.