Few knew about Marte Mapu before the Patriots drafted him. But he’s looking like a perfect fit.

Enter Jeremiah, the NFL Network’s draft guru and former NFL scout.

“Marte Mapu is my favorite player in this entire draft,” he tweeted. “The Patriots are getting an absolute playmaker.”

The sighs of relief around New England could be heard from the White Mountains to the Connecticut coastline.

“When you’re kind of just going along watching guy after guy, you kind of get into lulls and ruts, and then all of a sudden he just kind of jumped off the screen, like, this is a really fun player to study and a fun player to watch,” Jeremiah said.

After watching Mapu during spring practices (including OTAs and minicamp), it’s hard to argue with Jeremiah’s assessment.

Listed as a linebacker on the roster, Mapu played several positions during the workouts. The 6-foot-3-inch, 216-pounder was spotted near the box as a run supporter, on the perimeter in coverage, and as a deep center fielder in two-high-safety looks.

While expectations need to be tempered — the spring is for orientation and installation, not implementation — it’s clear to see why the Patriots were high on Mapu and why his teammates have raved about him.

“He runs like a free safety,” said Matthew Judon. “But he stands like a linebacker or an edge player. So that’s another guy that can play all three levels.”

When asked what position he should be classified at, Mapu smiled and said, “Call me whatever [the coaches] tell you to call me.”

Mapu will not be caught on the hype train, however. He’s more about baby steps than lengthy strides as he heads off to his summer break.

“I have no idea what the plans are going to be, honestly,” Mapu said after a minicamp practice last week. “I’m just going through the process. A lot of stuff was up in the air. But being here is just whatever they ask me to do.”

Mapu was a matchup piece in college, where he was used as a multidimensional defensive back who flashed his strength against the run and his coverage skills against receivers of all shapes and sizes.

“I’m just comfortable doing whatever they ask me to do right now,” Mapu said. “They watched my film, they know my technique, so I just try to follow through with whatever they have me do.”

Some of the traits that made Mapu such a terror in college (range, closing speed, explosive tackling, to mention a few) won’t be on display until training camp, but his instincts are obvious. When he’s on the field, he finds the ball.

“He’s a smart, smart dude,” said Jabrill Peppers. “Always asking questions. You can tell he wants to understand not just what his job is, but what the whole defense is.

“When you understand conceptually that way, it allows you to play faster and make more plays. He’s a young guy, but he’s out there communicating already. He’s shown the ability to play ‘backer and safety.”

Mapu said flopping positions is not really a big deal to him, as he has played just about everywhere — including quarterback — going back to his Pop Warner days in California.

“I’m doing everything I can on my part, but it’s hard to tell what the process is looking like just because, one, we’re not in pads and, two, we’re really far from the season, we haven’t really played any real games yet,” said Mapu, who missed the combine because of a pectoral injury suffered during Senior Bowl week. “But on the other hand, I’m just trying to soak up as much as I can and then grow every day.”

Bill Belichick hinted at how valuable Mapu’s versatility might be when asked about him on draft night.

“We’ll have to see how it goes,” the coach said then. “Might change from week to week depending on our opponent and what we’re playing in the defense and so forth. He’s shown versatility in his skill set. He’s a smart kid. He definitely understands defensive concepts and what [his college coaches] did and how they were doing it.”

Jeremiah believes Mapu found the perfect professional landing spot.

“Belichick obviously knows how to use this type of a player in a hybrid role,” he said. “He’d be able to match him up differently depending on who the opponent is. I just think he gives you flexibility.

“So in terms of what he does early on, I would imagine probably he’ll find his way onto some sub packages early, play some early downs, some passing downs. And then I think he’ll be hell on wheels as a special teams player while he’s, you know, earning more of a role.”

Jim McBride can be reached at james.mcbride@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @globejimmcbride.