Julian Edelman wasn’t expected to be drafted in 2009, and as the rounds dragged on, Edelman seemed certain that he was headed to Green Bay as an undrafted free agent.

In an except from his upcoming memoir, Relentless, Edelman recalled his draft day and shared the message Bill Belichick gave him after the New England Patriots took Edelman with the 232nd pick.

Edelman was a star quarterback for Kent State in college, but at 5-foot-10, he knew he couldn’t realistically play QB in the NFL. Edelman was offered a CFL contract, which he seriously considered, but his agent persuaded him to try switching positions to make it in the NFL.

Via Sports Illustrated:

“By the end of the sixth round, my phone rang. It was my agent, Don, and he said a bunch of teams were offering priority free-agent contacts. That meant they weren’t going to draft me but they wanted me to sign with them and they’d give me like $20,000 or something. I thought, Well at least I’ll get $20,000 out of this, even if I wasn’t getting drafted. I said to Don, “Where do you think I should go? I’m not really informed on how this works.” We decided on Green Bay. I fit their system, they didn’t really have a slot guy, it was a special franchise with history, and who knows? Maybe I’d go to the Packers and be a part of Green Bay history, me and Aaron Rodgers. As the seventh round started, Don called and said, “You never know, but the Patriots have a couple of seventh-round draft picks. I’m not saying anything, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they call.” I was thinking, They ain’t calling. They didn’t have me in for a visit. I’m going to be a Packer. Then I get a call from a private number. It was Berj Najarian, the director of football and head coach administration for the Patriots. He said, “I wanted to call and let you know we have selected you in the seventh round, pick 232. Here’s Bill Belichick.” I’m like, “Yo, be quiet!” I was nervous. I got outside and Coach Belichick gets on the phone and goes, “Hey, this is Coach Belichick. We are going to draft you. We really don’t know what you are going to play but we know you can play football. Nancy Meier [the Patriots’ director of scouting administration] will call you tonight to get you situated. Have a good one.”

You can read the entire except at SI.com.