FOXBORO, Mass. — Malcom Brown just set very high expectations for his arrival in New England.

The Patriots’ 2015 first-round draft pick, who started 26 games during his three-year college career at Texas, was asked if he has a message for fans of his new team.

“You’re about to get the best player you’ve ever drafted, so just be ready for when I touch the field,” Brown said on a conference call early Friday morning.

Brown, who otherwise was very humble in his call, chose not to attend the draft in Chicago, electing instead to watch with family members who have helped him on his journey. Brown, 21, is married with an eight-month old daughter and four-year-old step-daughter.

“You know, I had thought about it at one point,” Brown said. “Coach (Charlie) Strong talked to me, my agent talked to me, but I feel like, there’s a lot of people who actually helped me get to where I am. I’ve always, since high school, looked at the draft and always told my uncle that I wanted to be here one day. My high school coach who helped me out, I always told him that I wanted to work hard to get somewhere. And they all helped me get to where I am right now, so why would I just go there, and there’s so many people that wanted to be around me at the time of me being draft, and I would have to select a few to go with me and everybody else would be stuck here watching it, watching me on screen getting drafted. Why couldn’t we just all be together?”

Brown played defensive tackle in four-man fronts at Texas and defensive end when they ran a 3-4. The Patriots have used a hybrid front seven over the last few years, and Brown is another chess piece for Belichick to move around.

Thumbnail photo via John Rieger/USA TODAY Sports Images