METAIRIE, La. -- Hau'oli Kikaha figures he might have run downfield covering a tight end once in his entire college career at Washington, where he racked up 32 sacks over the past two years as one of the nation's top pass-rushers.

But coverage is becoming a regular part of Kikaha's repertoire now that he's a rookie outside linebacker with the New Orleans Saints.

"It's kind of half and half," said Kikaha, who embraced the challenge of learning his new responsibilities from the moment his senior year ended.

"It's something that I knew that I'd be working on this entire offseason," said the 6-foot-3, 246-pounder, who expected NFL teams would project him as a 3-4 outside linebacker. "So I've been working on it a ton, and I feel like I'm a lot more comfortable now. Things are easier, my eyes and my feet and my hands. It just kind of clicks a lot better than it had in the past."

Kikaha said he's excited to keep growing and show what he's worth. That attitude has been evident to those around him.

Former Saints linebacker Scott Shanle, who worked with Kikaha leading up to the NFL scouting combine, said he was "blown away" with Kikaha's work ethic and desire to learn. Saints coaches have made similar comments after drafting Kikaha in Round 2.

"I love the quickness, the passion, the way he plays the game," defensive coordinator Rob Ryan said as the Saints wrapped up four weeks of OTAs and minicamp earlier this month. "He's really done a great job working with [linebackers coach Joe Vitt] on getting his zone drops, something that he hasn't had a lot of experience doing. And he's come a long way in just the few days that we've had him. He's an athlete and he can run, so we're real excited about him."

It's tough to evaluate how good Kikaha has looked so far since the Saints haven't strapped on the pads or had any live contact in practices yet. But his athleticism and versatility both stood out as he lined up in a variety of positions -- often rushing the passer but also chasing down runners and dropping in coverage.

Kikaha spent a lot of time rotating in with the first-string defense while starting outside linebacker Junior Galette was sidelined by a pectoral injury.

"It's OTAs, so I don't know how much of it is a test and how much of it counts," Kikaha said of the first-string reps. "But it is nice to stand out there with guys that are starters … and know that I need to get everything correct so that they can depend on me and trust and respect and all that. Basically earn my spot."

It's hard to believe that Kikaha ran the 40-yard dash in just 4.9 seconds at his pro day since he seems to move well on the field and has drawn praise for his athleticism.

Kikaha said he's not sure if measurables like the 40-yard dash hurt his draft stock, but he also said he's not dwelling on it.

"You know what, I really don't know, nor do I care much. All I know is there have been guys drafted extremely high and busted and extremely low and have been the most successful. So that doesn't matter," said Kikaha, who needed two surgeries to repair a torn ACL early in his college career before bouncing back strong. "It's what you contribute to the team and how you produce and all of those things.

"I'll say this, I'm not really a ‘drill' guy. But when it comes to playing football, that's a different story for a lot of guys. So who knows, we'll see, maybe one day they'll get rid of the combine deal. But, whatever."

I started to ask Kikaha if he stands by his speed on the actual football field. Before I could finish the sentence, he smiled and said, "I stand by football."