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FOXBORO - Two-platoon football? How about three?

Matthew Slater and Ray Ventrone are being given three times the opportunity to earn a roster spot with the New England Patriots, as they are being asked to contribute on offense, defense and on special teams during this year's training camp.

Slater, the rookie from UCLA, and Ventrone, in his third pro season out of Villanova, are hybrids that may be getting more mileage per game than a Toyota Prius gets miles per gallon.

Both saw action in all phases of Thursday night's 16-15 loss by the Patriots to the Baltimore Ravens in the preseason opener. Slater finished as the team's leading receiver with three catches for 19 yards, and had four kickoff returns for 94 yards, while Ventrone added two catches for 35 yards including the longest reception for the Patriots (21 yards). Neither posted defensive statistics, but both played in the defensive backfield.

"You just try to make plays and take advantage of the opportunities," said Ventrone, originally signed as an undrafted free agent safety in 2005. "I try to maximize my time." Slater has a different pedigree than Ventrone; as the son of Pro Football Hall of Fame offensive lineman Jackie Slater, he's well-versed in the world of professional football. He didn't get his father's size, standing 6 feet and weighing in at 198, but his blistering speed carved out a niche for him at UCLA in 2007, when he returned 34 kicks for 986 yards and three touchdowns.

The success of players like Chicago's Devin Hester has revitalized the role of returner in the pros, and now, it seems like everyone is trying to find a game-breaker for their special teams.

"Guys like Devin Hester have definitely changed the position," Slater said last week at the Patriots' training camp. "They've done some things over the past few years that have been very impressive, and teams have had to gameplan for them. But you can't put me on that level yet.

"It definitely has changed how people look at special teams," he said. "And it kind of helped me to come along at a time when those guys were doing their thing. Definitely, it opens a lot of eyes and it gives guys opportunities who might not have had those opportunities before."

Yet in the pros, athletes don't have the luxury of being one-trick ponies. So the Patriots have been alternately playing Slater at receiver and cornerback in practice to see how his raw skills can be best utilized when he's not returning kicks.

"They have me doing what I'm doing for a reason, so I'm just coming out and my primary position is wherever I'm playing that down," he said. "I'm just coming out, trying to do what they ask of me, continuing to work hard and try to get better."

The returns will probably be the best chance for Slater to make the team and contribute immediately. He said he's looking forward to doing his thing with the Patriots' special-teamers in front of him.

"Definitely, my speed helps me," he said. "But it's a team thing. The returns are only going to be as good as the guys up front. And it's so much fun to have the type of guys blocking here, with the great athletes that we have blocking for you, it makes it a lot easier on the return when holes open like that.

But with his practice and preseason play at multiple positions, the comparisons are already being made to a former long-time Patriot who earned the respect of the entire NFL for contributing anywhere on the field.

"Troy Brown, you can't compare me to him," Slater said. "It's much too soon to make that comparison. I'm just a youngster trying to learn the ropes. What he was able to accomplish in his career, I really respect and admire him for it. But I'm not even close to being a Troy Brown." Slater also knows it pays to pick the brain of someone who can help him master the nuances of what he's learning for the first time, so it should come as no surprise that he's been seen spending extra time on the practice field going over things with Bill Belichick, whose coaching roots are on the defensive side of the ball.

"It's great to learn from him the knowledge that he has of the game, the success that he's had," Slater said. "It's an honor to be in this situation where I can play for him, and I'm just grateful for this opportunity."

Ventrone echoed those sentiments, knowing that he has a rare opportunity to prove himself worthy of a coveted roster spot.

"I think we know that we're all lucky and we're all fortunate," he said. "I'm just trying to take advantage of it."

MARK FARINELLA may be reached at 508-236-0315 or via e-mail at mfarinel@thesunchronicle.com. Read Farinella's blog, "Blogging Fearlessly," at thesunchronicle.com/farinella.