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FOXBORO - One is entering his 16th NFL season, the other his 15th. Together, they're older than dirt.

But as they continue their odyssey through the league, together for the first time on the same team, Rodney Harrison and John Lynch have solidified their mutual admiration society.

Last week, the former Denver and Tampa Bay safety got his first chance to express his admiration for Harrison to the New England media. Wednesday, Harrison returned the favor when he met with reporters in front of his Gillette Stadium locker for the first time this season.

"John and I, we've always have a fond respect for one another," Harrison said. "John is a guy that you look at yourself and you gauge yourself against. A future Hall of Famer, a nine-time Pro Bowler, a guy that really plays the game the way it should be played, and a guy that I have a tremendous amount of respect for.

"So I'm definitely welcoming him with open arms a guy that always wants to learn, a guy that always asks me questions," he said. "We've been communicating a lot the last three or four days. He's a guy you can do a multitude of things with." Harrison and Lynch are both San Diegans of long standing, Lynch a native of the city and Harrison having spent the first nine seasons of his career with the Chargers. Their paths crossed occasionally and the requisite respect was always addressed.

"It's not like we're best friends or anything," Harrison said, "but when I got hurt, he called over and checked on me. So I thought that was pretty classy of a guy like him."

Harrison said he has always appreciated Lynch's hard-nosed approach to the game and his willingness to play through injuries.

"He's just a guy that you know that when he gets out on that field, you know he's going to knock somebody's head off, playing safety the right way," he said. "He doesn't find an excuse. He's a proven warrior, a guy that plays hurt, and has had a number of things happen to him and he goes out there and continues to fight. I have a lot of respect for him."

Given how the Patriots use their safeties, in more matchup circumstances than strictly as free safeties and strong safeties, there's a chance that both Lynch and Harrison could wind up on the field side-by-side, putting 31 years of experience out there at the same time.

"Both guys have been very productive, hard-hitting impact players," Patriots' coach Bill Belichick said Wednesday. "Their presence is definitely felt on the field. They've played in different systems, but they're both good tacklers, they're very instinctive and efficient players, they get to the ball and they make a lot of big plays."

Harrison took some time off from practice in recent days for undiusclosed reasons, but he was back on the field Wednesday and expects to play Friday night when the Philadelphia Eagles visit Gillette Stadium (7:30 p.m.; Ch. 5, 64).

"I always want to play," he said. "I'm working hard to get back and I'm feeling pretty good, so we'll see what happens. (Belichick) gauges who gets what time and all that. You have to be prepared to play 60 minutes and play football, so your mindset going into the game is that you're going to play every single down and that you're going to give your best effort."

The game against the Eagles represents a good opportunity for Harrison and his teammates to knock some of the rust off and improve their communication and execution, which he admitted to be behind schedule slightly following preseason losses to Baltimore and Tampa Bay.

"Any time you get into the game situation and get experience, I think that's going to be valuable down the line," he said. "I think you gauge yourself as far as your conditioning because the speed of the game is totally different than what it is in practice. And you have an opportunity to go out there and communicate with your teammates, which, based on our offense and defense, communication is a huge part of it all." Harrison characterized this year's training camp as "typical."

"Guys are working extremely hard," he said. "Long days, sore bodies guys just really trying to get better each and every day. You have some good days and you have some bad days, but you just have to continue to focus and make sure we have more good says than bad.

"I'm looking forward to practice today, looking forward to getting better, putting two or three days back-to-back together and just feeling good," he said. "That's what's important for me. I'm looking at each day as a building block for me to get better, as well as this team."

MARK FARINELLA may be reached at 508-236-0315 or via e-mail at mfarinel@thesunchronicle.com. Read Farinella's blog, "Blogging Fearlessly," at thesunchronicle.com/farinella.