Florham Park, N.J. ? Mark Sanchez knew his buddy, Aiden Binkley, for only a few weeks.

It felt more like a lifetime for the New York Jets quarterback, who is leading his team into the postseason with a heavy heart and fond memories of perhaps the bravest person he has ever met.

“My man, Aiden,” Sanchez said during a radio interview earlier this week. “It’s breaking my heart. Man, he’s so tough. He brought me so much inspiration.”

Binkley was an 11-year-old fan from Floral Park, N.Y., who died last week from a rare form of cancer. He was an avid Jets fan, and his dream was to meet his favorite player, Sanchez, and the rest of the team. The Jets granted his wish last month, throwing in a tour of the Jets’ facility.

“Just for you to know a little bit about him and understand that he’s terminally ill and the courage he showed, you’d never know he was going through anything,” coach Rex Ryan said Thursday. “I mean, he had a big smile on his face. He was just happy to be here. He’d talk to you and look you dead in the eye. He was awesome.

“I came walking out of there thinking, ‘Oh, my goodness.’ I mean, it’s just crazy how courageous he was.”

Binkley died from rhabdomayosarcoma last Thursday, a few weeks after meeting his idol.

“It’s hard to talk about him,” a choked-up Sanchez told 1050 ESPN Radio on Tuesday night — just hours after his friend was buried. “He meant the world to me. Just in the couple of weeks of knowing him, I saw his personality, I saw his competitive spirit, I saw him fighting every day. And I’m complaining about a shoulder? Are you kidding me? This guy’s 11 years old and has cancer eating at his body, and this kid’s fighting everyday, he’s smiling every time I talk to him.”

Binkley’s parents, Lisa and Michael, have an online journal at CaringBridge.org, and they kept family, friends — and Aiden’s own fans — updated on their son’s brave battle.

Last Thursday morning, Lisa Binkley posted a message that her son was “still fighting” and his heartbeat was still strong.

A few hours later, came numbing news:

“It is with absolute heartbreak that I write to you. Aiden is an angel now.”

After hearing of the young fan’s death, the Jets held a moment of silence before their regular-season finale against Buffalo.

“He was an inspiration to me,” Ryan said. “I guess you knew it was coming, but you just have so much respect for that young man.”

Sanchez still wears the green bracelet Binkley gave him on his left wrist, a constant reminder of the courageous guy who suddenly came into his life and was gone way too soon.

“He’s the best,” Sanchez said. “I love him.”