It's hard not to notice Chase Winovich on a football field.
The third-round rookie Patriots edge defender's long blonde hair flowing from his helmet tends to stand out.
But in his first week-plus of training camp in New England, the former Michigan star's football abilities are also standing out, at least to his new coaches and teammates.
Patriots linebacker leader Dont'a Hightower, who has his own dark dreads hanging out the back of his helmet, has been impressed with Winovich's effort and mental capacities as he learns to fit in the New England scheme, transitioning from a college down lineman to a stand-up NFL outside linebacker.
"He's definitely got a high motor; that's for sure. He's one of the guys who works really hard," Hightower observed. "He's always asking questions and he obviously wants to do the right things all of the time. You really couldn't ask much more from a guy that's willing to do whatever and then with the way he does it. He acts like he's done it for a while and he definitely follows the role of whether it's [John] Simon, or Kyle [Van Noy], or Jamie [Collins] or whoever. Whoever he's working with, he does a good job of being a sponge."
Bill Belichick, who we all know isn't the easiest guy to impress, also offered up measured praise for his rookie pass rusher as he returned to the state of Michigan this week for joint practices with the Lions and the preseason opener on Thursday night at Ford Field in Detroit.
"Well, he's a rookie. He needs to work on everything. But, Chase is tough, he runs well, he's got good size, good power," Belichick said. "He had a very productive career at Michigan and we're looking forward to seeing him out there in some game action, both on defense and in the kicking game. But, like every rookie, he's got a long way to go and a lot of things to work on. It's a different game, and the competition's very high. He'll battle it and see how it goes."
