Chandler Jones

FOXBORO — For an NFL youngster, the transition between the first and second season can be even tougher than the jump from college to the pros for several reasons, including the fact that the league now has a full year of tape on you. The moves you used to surprise people as a rookie don’t work any more, and it’s on you to make the adjustments to take your game to another level.

For Chandler Jones, those adjustments are multifaceted. For one, in the wake of his 2012 season, he wanted to improve his upper body strength. The 6-foot-5, 265-pound defensive end out of Syracuse is a long, lean pass rusher, but wanted to bulk up to try and gain an advantage on opposing tackles.

“I’m still working on it — it’s a long process,” said Jones, the Syracuse product had 10 quarterback hits and six sacks as a rookie with the Patriots in 2012. “You can’t just wake up and just get bigger and stronger. [Strength] coach Harold [Nash] and [assistant strength] coach Moses [Cabrera] do a great job at strength and conditioning, so I’m excited.”

He’s also managed to do some boxing as part of his offseason workouts. He was initially set on training with his brother, MMA fighter Jonny “Bones” Jones, but a toe injury to Jonny may have set that make a bit.

“His toe was pretty bad, I don’t know if you guys saw it — his toe kind of broke out of the skin,” Chandler said of the gruesome injury his brother recently endured. “Actually I didn’t go down and train with him, but I did do some boxing and MMA right up over in Providence with [teammate] Brandon Deaderick. It was great training, very great training.”

It hasn’t been all work this offseason for Jones. He said Thursday he took about five weeks off to relax and recharge after a long rookie year.

“I was talking about that the other day,” he said. “Someone asked me ‘How was the offseason?’ There really isn’t an offseason. Even though you try to unplug from the game and get your mind off of it, you’re always thinking about what you could’ve done on that play or in that game. Physically, yeah, there’s definitely a resting factor, but you know mentally, you’re always thinking about football. That’s your job.”

When it comes to off-field stuff, Jones — who met second-round pick Jamie Collins for the first time on Thursday, just before the rookie was presented with his jersey in a ceremony alongside owner Robert Kraft — is excited to get his second year started for several reasons, not the least of which is that he’ll have a chance to show his chops as a leader.

“Being a rookie, especially being a first-round draft pick, you don’t want to make any mistakes. You’re nervous about going into every drill,” he said when asked about the offseason workouts, which are ongoing at Gillette Stadium. “Now going into my second year in the NFL, I kind of try to lead, be the first one at every drill, and just try to be a leader and that’s what my biggest focus is, taking the game more seriously.”

Robert Kraft

After taking part in the ceremonial presentation of the jersey to top draft pick Jamie Collins, Patriots owner Robert Kraft took some time with speak with reporters Thursday afternoon at Gillette Stadium. Here’s the entire Q&A with the media, which lasted just over seven minutes:

Opening statement: “It’s interesting, for us, [because] this was a nondescript draft class. There were no big names, no big schools, no career records. But we hope it parallels a couple past successful drafts we had where we had two tight ends in 2010, Gronk and Hernandez. Then in ’11, we had two halfbacks with Ridley and Vereen. Now we have two wide receivers with Dobson and Boyce. As I mentioned, this our 20th draft class. It’s a pretty exciting time for us because doing this today really means the start of the new season. All the final pieces are in place here at the stadium. Just some interesting stats to know — we had no picks in the first round, but in the first 102 picks in the draft, we had five, which is more than any other team. We felt this was a deep draft, in the second and third rounds, so we’re excited about that.”

On his initial impressions of top-pick Jamie Collins: “First of all, I know my mom –  bless her memory — lost her dad when she was 9. And here is a young man who lost both his parents by the time he was 6. I know how mentally tough my mother was. I think seeing him and talking to him — I guess he also lost a brother, and he went on a team this year that was 0-12, I think all of those things have weighed on him. He’s just a very wonderful and charming young man to talk to. I think he has had a certain resiliency that a lot of young people don’t have and see. I think he’s really appreciative of the opportunity he has to be here.”

On meeting these draft picks for the first time: “It keeps me vibrant. Seeing the new class come in, seeing the anxiety, but also the chippiness and confidence … I happened to be down in New York earlier in the week with a number of owners, and of course, everyone thinks they had a great draft and improved their team. I’ve been listening to it, and of course in fact, none of us know for a few years. But somehow, when you think about our team, I think we have more returning starters — 22 of our 24 starters are returning [including kicker and punter]; it’s going to be very tough for young people to make this team. I think there will be good spirit, good competition. It’s such a fun time.”

On being at the Bruins game last night: “That was funny. I was actually chatting with Jonathan and my grandson and I don’t know if we were eating anything or what, and I saw the camera, so that was cool. I’m happy to say that when I started doing that towel, everyone started doing it, and then they scored 20 seconds later. So I’m hoping to be back at the next game Saturday night. It will be great to see them … [and] it will be good to see the Celtics win tomorrow night. It’s a great sports time, and the Red Sox are doing great, so hopefully we can do the same when we get our chance.”

Will you be setting up a scouting office at Rutgers? “I spoke to Bill about that, and the good news is he’s done a lot of homework and he really thinks we have a family of players that can make a great contribution to us.”

On fans being bummed out about trading down: “As a fan, I could feel that way. As someone who hates losing in the fall, which is really what matters … like I said, we picked five players in the first 102, which is more than any other team picked. The real strength of the draft … if we had drafted in the top 20-25, we would have taken the same players that we took later. For us, from a cap point of view of having financial flexibility, and the talent, I think this draft wound up very well for us. I understand fans who don’t have the full knowledge of what goes and the value that’s there, how they could be disappointed. But I think we got the equivalent of first-round draft choices in the second and third round, the way I look at it. Time will tell.”

On the announcement from Jason Collins and what it means to the sports world, and if he could see a day like that coming in the NFL? “My hearty congratulations for [Jason]. I think 10 years from now, people won’t even talk about it. We’re about winning and if someone can come in here and help us win, I don’t care what ethic background, what racial background or what gender preference they have. If they can help us win and they’re about team, then we’re happy to have them here. I think we’re living in a world where there are no boundaries any more. There are no borders. We’re connected by technology and I don’t like what’s going on in Washington with this partisanship on both sides. I think we overcome it by being understanding and welcoming all points of view, and good human beings. So good luck to him.”

Robert Kraft

FOXBORO — Patriots owner Robert Kraft was asked Thursday about his thoughts regarding the recent announcement by Jason Collins, and what that meant for the world of professional sports as well as what sort of a reaction a gay player might get in New England.

“My hearty congratulations to [him],” he said Thursday afternoon. “I think 10 years from now, people won’t even talk about it. We’re about winning, and [if] someone can come in here and help us win, I don’t care what ethnic background, what racial background, what gender preference they have, if they can help us win and they’re about team, then I’ll be happy to have them here.

“I think we’re living in a world where … there are no boundaries anymore. No borders. We’re connected by technology. I don’t like what’s going on in Washington with this partisanship on both sides. I think we overcome it by being as understanding and welcoming all points of view and good human beings. So good luck to him.”

For more Patriots news, check out weei.com/patriots.

Donald Jones

For the third time this offseason, the Patriots’ wide receiving corps has undergone a re-do — New England picked up four wide receivers on draft weekend, adding rookies Aaron Dobson and Josh Boyce in the second and fourth round, as well as undrafted free agents T.J. Moe and Kenbrell Thompkins. They join a group that includes newcomers Danny Amendola, Mike Jenkins and Donald Jones.

Patriots coach Bill Belichick acknowledged in an interview with the NFL Network Saturday the team has undergone a “re-do” at the position this offseason, and expanded on that once the draft was done Saturday night.

“Look at the guys who have caught balls at that position and we don’t have a lot of them on our team,” he said. “[Julian] Edelman and then a couple balls here and there, so we’ll see how it all comes together. I don’t know.

“We’ve gone through that with other positions on our team. We did that with the tight end position a couple years ago. We did it at the running back position when that turned over. Certainly, almost the entire defense has turned over, other than Vince [Wilfork]. The specialists all turned over; other than Steve [Gostkowski], they all turned over a couple years ago. It’s part of football.”

With that in mind — for the third time this offseason — here’s another reset of the Patriots’ depth chart at wide receiver.

RETURNING

Julian Edelman: While everyone else is starting from zero with the quarterback, Edelman will certainly have an opportunity to gain reps this spring and summer because right now, he’ll be the only guy coming back who caught a pass from Brady last season. The 5-foot-10, 200-pounder, who was a seventh-round pick of the Patriots in 2009, has spent the last four seasons with New England, and has 69 catches for 714 yards and four touchdowns as a pro. He was off to a strong start last season, but a late September injury seemed to knock him off track. He’ll figure into the mix in the return game, and at least at this point, he likely figures as a backup to Amendola.

NEW VETERANS

Danny Amendola: The most notable addition of the offseason, Amendola does have some positional versatility, but right now, he projects as No. 1 option in the slot. The 27-year-old had a career-high 85 catches for St. Louis in 2010, and while he won’t be the only one asked to pick up the slack from the loss of Wes Welker, he’ll handle the bulk of the responsibility. It’s obviously very early in the process, but the 5-foot-11, 188-pounder is off to a good start when it comes to his relationship with the quarterback — the two were spotted working out together at USC earlier this spring.

Donald Jones: Jones — who has already proven to be a pretty good Tweeter — is a 6-foot, 208 pounder who has spent three seasons in the league, all with the Bills, and has 82 career receptions. His best year came in 2012 when he caught 41 passes for 443 yards and four touchdowns. He has some positional versatility, but right now, likely figures into the mix as a possible No. 3 receiver, but that could change with the development of rookies Aaron Dobson and Josh Boyce.

Mike Jenkins: Patriots fans reacted a little angrily to the addition of the 30-year-old Jenkins, but the 6-foot-4, 214-pounder has been able to put up fair numbers over the course of his career. The 30-year-old, who has had knee issues the last few years, caught 40 passes for 449 yards and two touchdowns last season with the Vikings. This looks like the Patriots taking a chance on a veteran and seeing what he has left. We should know pretty early on how much Jenkins has left — if there’s anything left, he could also be a possible option as a No. 3 receiver.

ROOKIES

Aaron Dobson: The 6-foot-3, 210-pound Dobson (along with PK Sam, the tallest receiver Belichick has ever drafted) should get every opportunity to make an impact on the New England passing game right out of the gate as a possible “X receiver.” The second-round pick, who compares favorably to Anquan Boldin in his size, skill set and overall approach to the game, had 165 catches for 2,398 yards and 24 touchdowns over the course of his career at Marshall. He projects as an outside-the-numbers threat in the NFL.

Josh Boyce: While Dobson is known for his physical gifts, this fourth-round pick made his mark as a collegian in large part because he’s a physical freak who made a huge splash at the combine. The 5-foot-11, 203-pound Boyce had 161 catches for 2,535 yards and 22 touchdowns in his three seasons as a collegian. He does have some positional versatility, and while his agility and footwork (he showed tremendous amounts of both by acing the 3-cone and shuttle events at the combine) suggests he can thrive in the slot, he also has the straight-line speed to survive on the outside.

TJ Moe: An undrafted free agent who was courted by several other teams before signing with the Patriots, Moe is a 5-foot-10, 204-pounder out of Mizzou who caught 94 passes the last two seasons — 54 passes for 649 yards and four touchdowns as a junior and 40 passes for 399 yards and one touchdown last season. Like Boyce, he crushed the 3-cone drill, which suggests a future in the slot as opposed to the outside. Boyce and Moe the two intriguing young receiving prospects.

Kenbrell Thompkins: The 6-foot-1, 193-pounder out of Cincinnati started the past two seasons with the Bearcats. He had 34 receptions for 541 yards and two touchdowns as a senior after posting 44 catches, 536 yards and two touchdowns the prior year. Right now, he projects as a likely practice squadder.

POSSIBLE ADDITIONS

Brandon Lloyd: He’s still out there as a free-agent possibility, but the addition of the two rookies, as well as the signing of Jones (and to a lesser extent, Jenkins) doesn’t bode well for a potential return for Lloyd. The 31-year-old was released earlier this spring, just prior to the date the team was contractually obligated to deliver a $3 million roster bonus. In his one season with the Patriots, Lloyd had 74 catches for 911 yards and four touchdowns. I suppose that if the Patriots were in a fix because of injury or some other unforeseen circumstance, they might give him a call, but at this point, it seems unlikely he’ll be back on Foxboro.

Deion Branch: The 5-foot-9, 195-pound veteran — who will be 34 before the start of the 2013 season — has carved out an impressive career since arriving in the league in 2002. His days of working as a true impact receiver are over — he ended the 2012 season with 16 catches for 145 yards in 10 games for New England. All that being said, it wouldn’t be a big surprise to see him around for at least part of the 2013 season on a part-time basis, particularly if the Patriots are faced with an injury issue.

EVERYONE ELSE

Kamar Aiken, Andre Holmes: The two receivers spent time in Foxboro as practice squadders last season. Aiken ended the season on the practice squad and Holmes was added to the roster in January after spending part of the 2012 season with the Cowboys.