NEW YORK (AP) - David Garrard expects to compete for the New York Jets' starting quarterback job despite not taking a regular-season snap in the NFL since 2010.

The 35-year-old veteran, who signed as a free agent Monday with the Jets, says Tuesday that he is healthy after dealing with back and knee injuries that sidelined him the last few seasons. Garrard was in training camp with Miami last summer and appeared to have a chance at the starting job, but a knee injury ended those hopes.

Garrard stayed away from saying he would win the Jets job by beating out Mark Sanchez and others, but added he's ``just really excited to get back into the league.''

The Jets currently have Garrard, Sanchez, Tim Tebow, Greg McElroy and Matt Simms as quarterbacks on their roster.