---

FOXBORO - Bill Belichick and the Patriots, like every other team in the NFL this season, will have a new wrinkle in their defensive play-calling procedure that is a direct offshoot of the "Spygate" controversy of last year.

So, it probably should come as no surprise that Belichick views the radio transmission of plays into the defensive play-caller's helmet as a bit of a nuisance.

His objections, if they can be called that, don't seem to be as much philosophical as they are logistical. It's just another thing to learn, to troubleshoot and to implement, and that takes time - time that's better spent right now addressing more pressing issues.

"We're not going to deal with the headset issue until next week," Belichick said during his Monday press conference. "We've got enough to do just to get ourselves straightened out with our normal stuff before we tackle something new. We're going to try to make sure we've got all of our installation in and all our different substitution procedures and all that instead of adding another thing to the mix."

Belichick said it was important to get the normal operation of his defensive substitutions down pat because, as he said, the helmet radios won't always be in use. "I'm sure there's going to be points in time where we're not going to be able to use that for various reasons," he said. "We're going to have to operate without it anyway, so we want to make sure we've got that system down, and then we're going to look into it either at the end of this week or next week."

According to the new NFL rule that permits defensive headsets, two players will be designated as those who can wear the radio-equipped helmets, but only one can be using the headset on the field at any time (as signified by a green dot decal on the helmet). The other player will have to wear a different helmet with no radio receiver in it, until he has to become the designated headset-wearer.

For some teams, the ones that don't stray too often out of their base defensive alignment, it's easier to designate one player who will be the primary signal-caller.

"For teams like the Ravens with Ray Lewis or the Bears with (Brian) Urlacher or somebody like that, where you know that guy's going to be on the field for 95 to 100 percent of the plays in every situation, he's the team's signal-caller anyway, that's kind of easy," Belichick said. "For other teams that maybe don't have that type of situation, it's a little less clear what the best way to handle it would be.

"In a defensive system like ours, I'm not even sure who the best player would be to wear that," he said. "We might have to experiment with that a little bit. Probably on our end, it would be a little bit of a trial-and-error kind of thing."

And there will be times, Belichick said, that substitutions will have to be made so quickly, it will be impossible to pull a helmet swap in the short period of time available. At times like that, the old system of having coaches signal in the plays from the sideline will be the best option.

"From the coaches that I've talked to in the league, the defensive coaches and the head coaches, I think everybody feels like, you'd better be prepared to signal."

One way or another, Belichick was certain that having a headset in a helmet will be a big adjustment for defensive players who aren't used to hearing disembodied voices during a game.

"Quarterbacks have kind of gotten accustomed to getting the play call in their helmet," Belichick said, alluding to the fact that broadcasting of offensive signals has been in effect in the NFL since 1994. "Now you start doing that to other guys, and they're trying to think about what they're doing, and they're hearing people talking to them in the headset ... we'll just have to see how it goes."

Showing the love Belichick offered a few kudos for his pal, rocker Jon Bon Jovi, the owner of the Arena League-champion Philadelphia Soul after that team's 59-56 victory Sunday over the San Jose SabreCats in ArenaBowl XXII in New Orleans.

"He took an expansion team to the AFL championship, so congratulations to him and the Soul," said Belichick, whose first Super Bowl victory came in New Orleans. "It's a big year for him ... he just got done with an album tour, and now he's got an Arena League championship."