Backfield is live with five

Heath Evans (44) will be joined by Kevin Faulk (right), Sammy Morris, LaMont Jordan and Laurence Maroney in the backfield. (Barry Chin/Globe Staff)

FOXBOROUGH - NFL coaches are repairmen on the sidelines. They'll examine the situation, choose a play, and decide which players fit.

And in their 53-player toolbox, most coaches keep a featured piece of equipment at running back, such as a hammer that pounds into the defense or the screwdriver that is shifty all over the field.

The Patriots don't have such a hammer (Fred Taylor or Jamal Lewis) or screwdriver (LaDainian Tomlinson or Brian Westbrook), but rather five Swiss Army knives who can block, catch, run, and play special teams.

"That's our strength, the versatility," said Sammy Morris, an eight-year NFL veteran and second-year Patriot.

It would seem the five-headed backfield of Morris, newly acquired LaMont Jordan, Heath Evans, Laurence Maroney, and Kevin Faulk makes the team better, because coach Bill Belichick said yesterday he wouldn't rule out going with five running backs on the season-opening roster.

"We will keep the best football players, the ones that help our football team the most, whoever they are," Belichick said. "If we would keep four quarterbacks, I would think we could keep five running backs."

Belichick had four quarterbacks on the roster in 2000: Michael Bishop, John Friesz, Drew Bledsoe, and a rookie out of Michigan named Tom Brady.

One reason the Patriots would keep the five backs is because the blend of various skill sets and running styles has worked.

"They have all been effective for us in the past, or given the opportunity LaMont has had in his time here, he has shown to be effective," Belichick said. "Heath, Laurence, Sammy, Kevin, and LaMont have all been productive with the ball in their hands. Either running it or catching it and in some cases returning it."

However, keeping all five could squeeze the depth chart at other positions. One possibility to alleviate that is keeping two tight ends instead of three.

There is also the obvious factor of competition among the backs for more playing time. While workhouse backs like Taylor and Tomlinson touch the ball more than 300 times a season, none of the Patriots backs are likely to come near that. But all insist they get along fine, with Morris going as far as to say they're each other's "biggest cheerleaders."

"That's the Patriot way," said Evans, "how they mix and match all these personalities and how they come together so smoothly most of the time is something special.

"I wish I could figure that out. Guys like Kevin and Sammy and Laurence who've been together, it's been real easy, but even the guys they bring into the mix, they just seem to click."

Evans in particular seems to click perfectly, and he may be the showcase example of a Patriots running back. He can act as an extra offensive lineman in the backfield or as another tight end. He also has split out wide as a receiver and lined up at tailback.

Evans's listed position - fullback - is fading in the NFL as more teams move to spread offenses and three-receiver sets. But his versatility makes him a good fit in New England, which he said is true of many Patriots.

"What makes a lot of guys a good fit here is you're asked to do multiple things," Evans said. "Take it back to Troy Brown - a guy who was an amazing wide receiver but you put him on defense and he doesn't skip a beat."

It's challenging to find the skilled but versatile players that Belichick prefers. But equally important - and perhaps even more challenging - is finding players whose personalities don't disturb the team chemistry.

"I think you look around the room, you see different styles, you see different mentalities, different attitudes, different talent levels," Evans said. "So [vice president of player personnel Scott Pioli] and Bill know what they're doing. They mix and match better than anyone in the league."

Having depth helps when someone is injured, but the varied running styles in the backfield also give defenses fits.

"We all bring something," said Maroney. "Kevin has his own style. Sammy has his, Heath has his, I've got mine. Lamont's got his that he's bringing to the table.

"It's just different styles that's going to keep defenses on their toes and [having] to play different defenses when different backs are in the game."

As for their specific strengths: Evans is the bulldozer; Faulk doubles as a sticky-fingered receiver (328 career catches) who uses shifty quickness to freeze defenders, as he did to linebacker Tedy Bruschi during seven-on-seven drills yesterday; Maroney can outrun his shadow to the end zone if he finds daylight, whether on a kick return or from the backfield; Morris consistently finds yards up the middle and everywhere else; and Jordan, who was signed July 26, is all kinds of versatile with 792 career rushes, 158 career catches, and 33 kickoff returns.

"It's the old adage in football: The more you can do, the more you can stick around," Morris said.

Such is the case in New England, where sticking around means playing all over the field. For these backs, they're more than happy to fit in wherever needed.

Baxter Holmes can be reached at BHolmes@globe.com