Patriots Rookie Learning ‘Whole Defense’ To Increase Versatility

If you sat New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick down in a room and asked him what he looks for out of a football player, you’d get a few key characteristics.

He might tell you he’s looking for someone tough, versatile and smart. He might talk about their build, and how he’d look for a frame that can be molded. He’d also probably enjoy a player who is soft-spoken, purely focused on doing what he can do to help New England win.

Well, that describes Patriots rookie Marte Mapu.

These are all hypotheticals, of course, but as each training camp practice passes we get a closer glimpse into just how much Mapu fits in New England, and exactly what Belichick saw in him to make him the No. 76 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft out of an FCS school.

“I’ve tried to study the whole defense and try to make myself as versatile as possible so the coaches can use me how they want to,” Mapu said Thursday, per team-provided video. “I feel comfortable anywhere.”

That’s impressive.

“I’ve tried to study the whole defense and try to make myself as versatile as possible.”

Patriots rookie Marte Mapu

It doesn’t appear to be lip service, either, as Mapu has lined up at safety, linebacker and in the slot during his first training camp with the Patriots. His teammates have raved about his intelligence and willingness to ask questions — which the 23-year-old is finding beneficial.

“They’re super helpful,” Mapu said. “I can ask anyone anything. The special teams players, (like Matthew Slater, Brendan Schooler). I’ve asked people who are in year two, to someone like (Slater) who has been in the league a long time. It’s a good culture here.

“(I’m asking) anything I can, so I don’t make mistakes on the field.”

Mapu is still recovering from a torn pectoral muscle he suffered preparing for the draft, so until he sheds the red non-contact jersey it will be difficult to get a true grasp on just how impactful he could be as a rookie. If everything he’s done off the field is an indication, though, we could be looking at a Day 1 starter.