Chris Hogan grew up a New York Jets fan and is excited to join his new team.

Reinforcements are on the way. The New York Jets wide receiver position has been riddled with injuries and opt-outs and newly acquired Chris Hogan has cleared all the protocols to join the team and take his opportunities.

Hogan was signed by the Jets on Wednesday.

“We have three weeks until the season starts,” Hogan told reporters Thursday in a virtual press conference. “I still have a while to go and I still have a lot to learn about this offense, but it’s something that I'm definitely capable of doing and looking forward to. I've just been kind of home training and waiting for the next opportunity. So it was exciting for me to be able to put the pads back on and get out there with my new teammates.”

The 32-year-old Hogan spent three years with the New England Patriots and has two Super Bowl rings for his efforts. He went to the Carolina Panthers last year but played in only seven games due to a knee injury that landed him on injured reserve (IR). Last year he caught eight passes for only 67 yards.

A big reason for Hogan’s delay in signing with any NFL teams were the unique circumstances in the offseason. There were no offseason in-person workouts allowed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Hogan, like many other unsigned free agents, is coming off a knee injury and teams needed to see him before they would offer him a contract.

“I think a large, a large factor was COVID and everything that's used for dealing with,” Hogan said. “For a while there, the NFL was not allowing free agent workouts. There was a time when they thought they were going to open it up and then they put an end to that and we're not allowing guys to travel.”

But here he is with a Jets team that needs not just bodies at wide receiver but starting quality talent.

“It was frustrating on my end obviously because I wanted to get to wherever my next opportunity was,” Hogan elaborated. “It just required a lot of patience and it gave me an opportunity to continue to work out and work on some little things that I focused on this offseason after there was an aspect of wanting to see my knee and get that tested. I can assure all you guys that I feel great. Knee feels good, everything feels good. I'm just excited to be here.“

Jets head coach Adam Gase knows Hogan from coaching against Hogan when the receiver was playing for the Buffalo Bills and more recently the New England Patriots while Gase was the Miami Dolphins head coach and last year in New York.

“I’m pretty sure there’s a few games where I can go back and say he did some good things against some of the teams that I was on. I mean he’s been in quite a few games that I’ve been on the other sideline,” Gase said. “You got a guy that’s been around for a minute, he’s played on some really good teams, he’s played in some big games. He’s a quick study. I mean for him to be able to jump in there on some of the plays today and know where to line up and know what to do and be able to execute, make a couple of catches. I like being around him.”

The 32-year-old Hogan said he was thrilled to be playing for the Jets, his hometown team. He grew up in New Jersey and was a fan of Wayne Chrebet growing up.