"He wants to get it right, he really pays attention to it. You ask him to change some of the techniques a little bit from what he’s done in the past and he’s been very willing and eager to try to understand how we want him to play it. And he’s a smart football player, even though he hasn’t done the variety of things that some other players have done."

Burgess says part of it was learning to come off the bench.

In the past, as a full-timer, he felt the game out as he went along. Now, he's got to watch what's happening on the field, and figure things out without getting the physical reps.

"I gotta go in there in certain situations, and a get a feel for each situation," Burgess said. "And next time you go in, it might be a different situation. You gotta adapt. ... Stay in tune with the game, no matter what the down and distance is. I do a lot of that, watching the offensive guys, trying to get a feel for what the guy in front of me is getting. And we’ll sit down and talk about what they’re getting each time."

He also has to deal with varying roles depending on who the opponent is -- "You gotta look at who we’re playing. It was Indianapolis, their thing is to throw the ball. So I was out there the whole game. When you play a team that runs, you gotta play what you get. That’s it. Wherever they put me, I’m ready to go."

The 31-year-old said the closest approximation to the role he's playing now came his first year in Oakland, when he was used as an on-the-line outside 'backer on early downs, while kicking down to rush end in passing situations.

Even then, though, what he was asked to do was different. In New England, he's not only taken on the limited coverage responsibilities that Belichick noted, but also has had to play both sides of the line.

"It’s situations. It’s situational football," Burgess said. "Wherever they need me, they put me in, and I try to do the best I can in that situation."

Burgess maintains, after the years in Oakland, he's happy to be back in a winning situation. And even if he hasn't been the pass-rushing force some hoped he would, it seemed like Belichick is happy to have him, based on, if nothing else, the commitment Burgess has made.

"It’s not like we’re asking him to play corner. He still plays, for the most part, at the end of the line of scrimmage, and at the end of line of scrimmage – regardless of whether you’re playing up or down – there’s only so many combinations over there," Belichick said. "And he’s seen all those. It’s just that not, he’s seen them with a little bit different responsibility. I don’t want to make it sound like we’re going to a new language, like we’re learning Mandarin here. Some of it’s a little different, that’s all.

"And he’s done a good job of it, he really has. We’ve had other players that in all honesty, we’ve asked to do less, and they’ve had trouble with it. Everybody’s different. Until you work with a player, it’s hard to know. Some players you move from the right side to left side, and they could care less. Other guys, you move them and it’s monumental."