FOXBORO -- Stevan Ridley knows what’s going on, so when you ask him how badly he wants to be the Patriots’ No. 1 running back, he smiles.

“Oh, man -- I think that’s every little kid’s dream, you know what I mean? I’m going to say pretty bad,” he said after practice on Sunday.

“But it’s a joint and a team effort. We have a group of running backs that can all play. We all do great things different, and we all do them well. For me, I’m just going in there and trying to pull my load, as coach said, and so are the other guys. Regardless of who it’s going to be, one of us will be the starting guy, and the next will be able to step up and give us some rest when we’re tired.”

After a rookie year that saw him finish second on the team with 87 carries for 441 yards and one touchdown, it’s Ridley that stands to benefit the most from the Patriots’ offseason moves at running back. BenJarvus Green-Ellis, who led the team in rushing the last two seasons (including 1,008 rushing yards in 2010) left for Cincinnati in free agency. In addition, New England cut loose Joseph Addai, and it appears that the Patriots will decide to take a pass on re-signing veterans Sammy Morris and Kevin Faulk, at least for now.

And while others have gotten work in the backfield through the first four days of camp -- including second-year back Shane Vereen, third-down guy Danny Woodhead and undrafted free agent Brandon Bolden -- through the first four days of camp, Ridley has gotten the bulk of the reps with what appears to be a reasonable facsimile of the starting offense.

“It’s been work,” he said when asked to assess the fist four days of camp following Sunday’s practice. “I would say I’m just trying to come in here and be as close to perfect as I can be. That’s how this offense is run. I know what Tom [Brady] expects out of this offense when he’s out there -- he wants perfection.

“When we [watch] film, there are still things we have to correct. I have a long way to go. I just have to go out there and do my best and whatever coaches tell me to do, make those adjustments the following day and try and not repeat those mistakes.”

Despite his lack of flash, one of the things that made Green-Ellis such a presence in the New England offense was his ability to hit four yards a carry pretty consistently, as well as his ability to protect the ball. Last season, in 200 total snaps (per Pro Football Focus), Ridley demonstrated many of those same qualities, showing that he has the size to consistently run between the tackles, as well as display the necessary burst to run away from defenders.

Late in the year, the LSU product stumbled when it came to ball security -- he had a fumble in the regular-season finale against Buffalo and another in the divisional playoff win over Denver. But he was certainly able to keep the chains moving -- he didn’t have enough carries to qualify for a spot among the league leaders, but his 5.1 YPC would have had him tied for 10th in the league.

Last summer, he had to hit the ground running, as the lockout robbed last year’s rookies of any time to get acclimated to the NFL through the spring sessions. Ridley said that while there’s more of a comfort level now as opposed to where he was last year, he’s still not completely satisfied.

“I feel a little bit better with the offense and stuff like that, but where I need to be? I’m not even close to that,” he said. “I feel a little bit better than last year, but that doesn’t say much. I still have work to do. Like I said, every day we have a job to do, and we come out here and do it. And I’m working hard each day.”

Regardless of how reps are split up, Ridley will be a part of a backfield that will likely include Vereen (15 carries, 57 yards in a rookie year where he was dogged by injury), Woodhead (a dependable third-down presence who was the only player on the team last year in the top 5 in rushing attempts and receptions) and Bolden (an undrafted rookie who has impressed in minimal work to this point).

And while there’s always the possibility the Patriots add to that group with familiar faces like Faulk or Morris -- or even free agents Cedric Benson or Ryan Grant -- Ridley likes the fire of the running backs who are all on the roster now, saying there’s a constant push to bring out the best in each other.

“It’s competition. It’s competition,” he said. “And I don’t think anybody in that room is scared of competition. We’re all competing.”