FOXBORO — The guy who drew most of the attention at Patriots’ practice Friday morning wasn’t even dressed for football.

New wide receiver Chad Ochocinco drew a big cheer when he walked on the field, and while he didn’t get the chance to jump in on any action, Ochocinco spent most of the hourlong session chatting with quarterbacks — mostly Tom Brady — and the rest of the wide receivers. He dipped his head into the offensive huddle from time to time, and spent lots of time with coach Bill Belichick and offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien.

While he didn’t address the media in Friday — he’s slated to speak with reporters after Saturday morning practice — Ochocinco changed his Twitter avatar to a shot if him shaking hands with Brady and wrote: “It’s 1 thing to jump and be able to land on 2 feet but I had no idea I was landing in Heaven. Hope all is well on this good Friday.”

After a quiet morning, that all changed in the afternoon. The Ochocinco and Albert Haynesworth deals were made official, and the receiver tossed on his old No. 85 — the result of an apparent deal with tight end Aaron Hernandez, who made the switch to No. 81 — and jumped right into pass-catching drill with the rest of the receivers for the Friday afternoon session.

According to those in attendance, while fans cheered Ochocinco in uniform and gave a round of applause for every catch he made, he had a couple of ugly drops, both of which were along the sidelines and both of which were passes from Tom Brady.

“I think the toughest part is just learning the offense,” said wide receiver Wes Welker on the potential challenges for the newcomer. “We’re so complicated, so different than any place from where he’s been. It’s just going to be a little different and we’re just going to try and help him along, bring him along slowly but surely, and get him out there and get him playing with us.

“[But] he’s a great player. I think he showed that over the years. Hopefully, he can make some big play for us and keep us moving in the right direction.”

While Patriots coach Bill Belichick declined to talk in detail Friday morning on the acquisition — he explained that because the deal was not official yet, he could not comment on the situation — his teammates were more than happy to talk about what Ochocinco could mean to the New England offense.

“I’ve known Chad for a long time. I’ve watched him for a long time, and he brings a lot of energy to the team,” said quarterback Tom Brady. “He’s been a very prolific receiver. I think he’s had a bunch of production over the years. Hopefully he can come in here and find a role on this team, as we’re all trying to do.
“I think I met him at the Pro Bowl a long time ago. He’s just fun to be around. He loves football.”
The 6-foot-1, 192-pound receiver is a veteran of 10 NFL seasons. A second-round pick in 2001 out of Oregon State, Ochocinco has started 132 of 151 games — all for Cincinnati — and has accumulated 10,783 receiving yards on 751 receptions and 66 touchdowns. In 2010, he became one of 34 receivers to reach 10,000 receiving yards or more and he enters the 2011 season ranked 27th in NFL history.
A six-time Pro Bowler, Ochocinco put together a string of six straight 1,000-yard seasons (2002-07). He became the first person in NFL history to lead his conference in receiving yards in four straight seasons (2003-06). Oakland’s Tim Brown and San Francisco’s Jerry Rice have been conference leaders in three straight seasons. He has registered a Cincinnati record with 31 100-yard receiving games.

Welker was an offseason workout partner of Ochocinco Bommaritos Performance Systems in South Florida, and from what he was able to glean from their offseason get-togethers, the Patriots have themselves a hard worker.

“From what I saw, he works had and goes out there and gives his best effort. He’s an early riser and likes to get after it, and that’s what I like. I’m hopeful to see the same type of deal here in camp and throughout the season,” Welker said.

“Anything that’s going to make the team better is good for the team,” said wide receiver Julian Edelman. “I’m sure upstairs they’re going to be doing whatever they can to assemble guys who can make this team win. If that’s the case, that’ll be good. We’ll welcome him. Until then, we’ll just have to do what we have to do.”

What could he bring to the New England passing game? Mike Tanier of Football Outsiders believes that Ochocinco is more of a “situational” player at this stage of his career, and not a real deep threat.

“I think you have to look at Ochocinco as a situational player at this point in his career,” said Tanier. “As a deep threat, he was terrible in 2010: of 16 passes over 20 yards in air length thrown to him, he caught just three. I think he has lost a little bit of his wheels and his agility, and for receivers of his type, compensating for lost speed requires top technique and concentration. Ocho is not known for his concentration.

“I think this move is going to get a lot of ink, especially in conjunction with the [Albert] Haynesworth signing, but it’s really about Belichick getting talented veterans well below market value. Ochocinco can still open things up for tight ends underneath and play a role, just as Haynesworth can still give you 20 snaps per game.”