EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. ? Lost in the excitement of the latest renewal of the Yankees-Red Sox rivalry and the exploits of A-Rod, Jeter and Mariano is the other story quietly gaining momentum in the New York area.

It’s the unexpected rise of the Jets and Giants, who together are providing two of the NFL’s biggest surprises this season.

Also-rans a year ago with a combined 10 wins, the teams are off to great starts.

The Giants (4-1) are riding a four-game winning streak heading into a bye week under new, no-nonsense coach Tom Coughlin. Their only loss was to Philadelphia (4-0).

If Herm Edwards’ Jets (4-0) beat San Francisco today at Giants Stadium, it will be a franchise-record best start.

“The thing you find out in this league is that one year doesn’t determine what is going to happen the next year,” said Giants quarterback Kurt Warner, the two-time MVP who has added another surprise with a career-reviving season.

While no one on either team is seriously considering an All-New York Super Bowl just yet, Giants running back Tiki Barber, who leads the NFL in rushing, let his mind wander for a split second.

“They’ll have to move it here,” Barber said of airlifting the title game from Jacksonville, Fla., to the Meadowlands in New Jersey.

“Most people in Florida are from New York and New Jersey anyway,” Giants center Shaun O’Hara quipped.

Jokes aside, the early success of the Jets and Giants has common threads.

Both made significant player and coaching changes in the offseason. They also have stayed relatively healthy in a year where many contenders have been hurt by injuries. Somewhat easy schedules haven’t hurt, either. The New York teams have won against opponents with a combined 10-27 record.

Coughlin has to get credit for the Giants’ success. He restored order to a team that went 4-12 in 2003 by instituting a detail-oriented doctrine that demands accountability on and off the field.