EAST RUTHERFORD, N. J. -- Darrelle Revis might as well have returned against any other team.
Facing the Jets at MetLife Stadium on Sunday in his first game back since they traded him in the offseason, and since he tore his ACL last September, invoked no extra emotions from Revis.
"My thing is just going out there and focusing on what we need to do as a team, me being a Buccaneer now," Revis said following the New York Jets' 18-17 win against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. "That was my focus, coming up here and accomplishing one of our team goals, being 1-0 and getting a win."
The Jets made a franchise-altering move in April when they dealt Revis to the Buccaneers for a pair of draft picks, including the 13th overall selection in this year's draft. Revis played for the Jets for six seasons and had developed into arguably the game's best defensive player while suiting up for them.
Sunday's game marked Revis' first game since Sept. 23, 2012, when as a member of the Jets, he tore his ACL against the Dolphins and missed the remainder of the season.
After a long and grueling rehab process, Revis finally put Revis Island back on the map on Sunday, playing 53 snaps, according to an unofficial tally. Revis, who was on a snap count, had to miss some snaps due to exhaustion, according to Tampa Bay coach Greg Schiano.
"It felt good getting back out there and doing what I love to do. I'm just more excited to be back out there with my teammates," Revis said. "They've been anxious, I've been anxious. It was a great feeling to be out there and be playing, and compete at a high level."
The Jets indicated during the week that they would not specifically go after Revis to test his knee, and they followed their word. The Jets threw at him four times and completed just one of those passes, a 13-yard completion to Santonio Holmes on the final play of the first quarter. In the second half, the Jets, like many teams have done before, almost completely ignored Revis' side of the field.
The cornerback actually heard boos when his name was announced after his first pass deflection. He finished with one tackle and two pass deflections. He said his knee held up fine after the game.
"Those guys have a game plan. Didn't really know what it was, they want to attack me in certain ways with certain moves or certain things. Only thing I can do is be prepared," Revis said. "To me, it's all competition. Those guys are competing, it was great competition today, and I tip my hat off to them, they came back and won."
Revis' new teammates all noticed the effect he had on their secondary, and liked what they saw from Revis in a limited snap count on Sunday.
For the Jets, it was an unusual experience seeing Revis not wearing the green and white on a Sunday.
"It was strange, but I was happy to see him out there healthy," said Jets linebacker and longtime Revis teammate David Harris. "He played extremely well today as he always does. He did his job, but I feel even better for us because we got the victory.”