New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick is notably one of the best talent evaluators that the league has ever seen while the longtime NFL mind currently feels quite strongly about one of his linebackers.

Jamie Collins, who is now in the midst of his second stint with the Patriots, spent a few seasons with the Cleveland Browns before ultimately returning to New England — something that Belichick is apparently very happy about.

“He’s very smart and he understands things, and he a lot of times will recognize things before I do, and say ‘Hey, can I do this in this situation,’ or ‘Hey, can I do this in that situation?’ That’s the kind of football thinker he is, so he’s brought a lot to us defensively in a lot of different areas,” Belichick said during a conference call on Monday, via USA TODAY Sports. “From first down to third down, to playing on the punt team, he’s added a lot to us.”

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Belichick believes that Collins is a very special player and adds a versatile dynamic to an already dangerous Patriots defense.

“Jamie’s a very special player. He’s very smart, instinctive,” Belichick added. “He’s got a great nose for the ball in the passing game and in the running game. He’s got the physical skills to play at the end of the line and off the line, to blitz, to play in coverage, play against the run and play against the pass. So we’re able to do different things with him and he’s been productive and effective in all of them. So it’s really exciting to have that type of player in your system, and to have players he can work with. They can do things that maybe you don’t normally or aren’t able to do because of some type of limitations.”

The Patriots are already a perfect 2-0 on the season with the struggling New York Jets on the immediate horizon in Week 3.