Ventrone tries WR after playing in secondary

Troy Brown, also 5-10, spent his entire 15-year career with the Patriots and played on both sides of the ball toward the end of his time with New England, filling in at cornerback.

"I guess I'm just trying to literally learn every day and, hopefully, make some plays whenever I get a chance," Ventrone said.

Learning a new position was "overwhelming" at first, but he had the entire offseason to prepare. He even stayed in the area and worked out with the team's quarterbacks before minicamp in May.

"We used Ray last year on the practice squad to run routes for the defense as an offensive receiver and he really did a good job," Belichick said. "I think he can play both receiver and defensive back at a competent level.

"He is a tough kid, he runs hard, he catches the ball well and he showed up in the kicking game. His versatility is his number one strength at this point, but when he does play he has been productive in defense, special teams and offense. He is a unique guy."

Ventrone claims not to be nervous about the upcoming cuts.

"I don't think you can worry about all the stuff you can't control," he said.

But he has come a long way since early in training camp, once he figured out where to go on the field for stretching exercises.

"I jogged over to the defensive side and had to do a U-turn and go back to the offense," Ventrone said. "I realized I didn't have the blue jersey on. I had the white one on."