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BY RICH CIMINI

DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER

Tuesday, October 16th 2007, 4:00 AM


It's still Chad Pennington's team, but he's on notice.

Eric Mangini reiterated yesterday that Pennington still is the starting quarterback, but his latest vote of confidence included a first-time disclaimer. "I'll continue to assess the whole situation, not just with that position, but with every position," Mangini said.

If Pennington doesn't emerge from his funk Sunday in Cincinnati, where the Jets meet the Bengals (1-4), it likely will result in a change to Kellen Clemens. Mangini is extending every benefit of the doubt to Pennington, who has six interceptions in the last three games. In that span, he has led only three touchdown drives.

But Mangini has steadfastly maintained that the problems go beyond Pennington. Quoting a favorite line from Bill Parcells, Mangini said, "It's not like going to AAMCO; you just can't take out the sparkplug."

Pennington seems to have the support of the locker room. "I feel good with Chad behind center," WR Jerricho Cotchery said. "A lot of guys feel the same way."

NO DEAL: With the league trading deadline today, there are wild rumors about Pennington being dealt. It's believed the Jets have received inquiries from quarterback-needy teams, but he's not going anywhere. "Ludicrous," Mangini said of the speculation. ... Jets caught a bad break on Donovan McNabb's 75-yard TD pass to Kevin Curtis, the only touchdown in Sunday's 16-9 loss to the Eagles. A replay clearly shows the ball wasn't snapped until the play clock had expired.

SNEAK ATTACK: Mangini, defending the decision to try a QB sneak on third-and-1 at the end of the game, said the Jets had a "pretty impressive" track record on those plays. On four previous third-and-1 sneaks this season, the Jets made a first down each time. On handoffs to Thomas Jones, they're 4-for-5 in those situations. ... Explaining to fourth-down pass to Laveranues Coles, Mangini said, "The success rate of that play over time has been extremely high. It's arguably one of the best receivers in the league being thrown to by a guy who has great chemistry with him." TE Sean Ryan was open in the far corner of the end zone.