No one knows what Tom Brady and Bill Belichick want in a wide receiver more than Troy Brown.

Brown, who played for the Patriots from 1993 until 2007, spent six-plus season catching passes from Brady and developed a reputation as one of the NFL’s more dependable receivers. Thanks to his chemistry with the Patriots quarterback, Brown caught 238 passes in the regular season between 2001 and 2003, including a career-best 101 receptions in 2001.

And he believes the occasionally controversial Chad Ochocinco would be a great fit with Brady and the Patriots.

“The first two things that he looks for in a wide receiver are, ‘Can he get open?’ and ‘Can he catch the ball?’ Those are the first two things you need if you’re going to be a successful wide receiver with Tom Brady,” Brown said.

“You also have to be smart enough to pick up the offense. Your football knowledge has to be pretty darn good to play in the New England system. He will throw you the ball if you are open. If you do your job and get open and catch the ball, you will keep getting the ball.

“I think Chad has all those things. I think he’s smart enough and I think he plays hard. He’s a hard worker — he may have had different agendas when he’s been on other teams with other coaches, and he’s been able to get away with things. But he’s never been to jail or been in trouble with the law. None of that stuff. All he is is a self-brander that has been able to capitalize on certain things for his own benefit. As far as that goes, good for him.”

Ochocinco — who recently professed that he planned to change his name back to Chad Johnson sometime soon — has been a bit of a handful for coaches and teammates over the course of his career. A voluminous Tweeter who also had his own reality show, he’s never at a loss for words.

But despite the fact that he has one more year left on his contract, he’s always professed an admiration for Belichick, and he recently began what could best be described as an online flirtation with the Patriots and Belichick, responding to a question on Twitter about New England by saying: “PePe and Bill #EPIC.” (Pepe is one of his several online aliases.)

For his part, Belichick has always smiled when talking about Ochocinco. The two first met in 2001 when Belichick took a look at him as part of a pre-draft workout. That relationship deepened at the Pro Bowl after the 2006 season.

“I like Chad — I like him as a player. I like him as a person,” Belichick said last year. “I like his enthusiasm and the fun he has with football, and I like how he competes on the football field. I have a lot of respect for that.

“[We’re] an odd couple, but in the end I think we have a lot of things in common.”

“Bill and I got very well acquainted once we got to the Pro Bowl and got to know each other,” Ochocinco said last September. “It became a relationship beyond just a football player and a coach. He became a friend of mine.

“He has a lot of respect for me in my game and I have a lot of respect for him in everything he’s done as a coach. We just became really close and fond of each other’s work. He’s one that I look up to tremendously, one that I’ve never played for, but I show the same respect as if he was my own head coach.”

For what it’s worth, Ochocinco’s coach Marvin Lewis doesn’t think the Patriots will make a play for the receiver, telling the Boston Herald, “Belichick’s smarter than that.” And when it comes to on-field contributions, there’s some debate as to just how much the 33-year-old has left in the tank.

However, he had 72 catches for 1,047 yards in 2009, and followed that up with 67 catches for 831 yards this past season. And Brown believes Ochocinco's ability to stretch the field and his excellent footwork would play well in New England for several reasons, not the least of which is he has a soccer background — like Patriots’ receivers Wes Welker and Deion Branch — and New England (Rex Ryan jokes aside) traditionally covets wideouts who display good footwork.

“He is a tremendous route runner. The guy can cut on a dime and he’s got great speed,” Brown said of Ochocinco. “He has great feet — he’s a former soccer player. He’s able to run routes and come out of breaks really well and catch the ball at tough angles. I think he’d be a great fit in New England.”