Hey all --

While Bill Belichick not-so-subtly expressed his "joy" at having to coach the AFC team in the Pro Bowl after New England's loss to Indianapolis three weeks ago, there was at least one side effect to the coach being in Honolulu: the chance to schmooze pending free agents.

(As an aside, coach looked quite natty in his island threads, no?)

Chief among the players the Pats would be interested in is Ravens linebacker Adalius Thomas. A 29-year old seventh-year pro, Thomas had 83 tackles (64 solo), 11 sacks and an interception with Baltimore last season -- in a 3-4 system.

And it would appear that Thomas took a liking to Belichick last week:

"I never really met Belichick before, and you always hear about how he's a mean guy," Thomas told the Associated Press. "But it's real interesting to see how he reacts with different players, how he gets comfortable over here. He's actually a really nice guy. I was surprised."

Free agency begins in less than three weeks. Stay tuned...

shalise