FOXBORO — Patriots wide receiver A.J Brown sees himself in rookie outside linebacker Gabe Jacas.

No, they don’t play the same position. They don’t even play on the same side of the field. But as second-round picks with high expectations, they’ve now both experienced Mike Vrabel’s hard coaching.

“Early on, he was just so tough on me, and I really didn’t understand it as a young player,” Brown, who was drafted by the Titans when Vrabel was head coach, said Saturday. “I know the expectations that I have for myself, and I know the expectation he had for me. They were even higher than the expectation I had for myself. So, it just comes from a great place. I know.”

Brown said he’ll laugh to himself during team meetings because he now sees Vrabel being just as tough on Jacas.

The veteran wide receiver approached Jacas to give him some insight on Vrabel’s coaching.

“Yeah, I mean, we talked about it,” Jacas said Sunday. “When I first came here, he’s like, ‘Yeah, Vrabe’s doing that because he sees the potential. He sees what you can do. So, don’t take it as like a sign of negativity, but it’s all positive.’ And it’s the same thing that he did to him when he was a rookie, so it means a lot.”

Jacas said it was “pretty special” to have a three-time Pro Bowler like Brown come up to him to share that message.

“It means a lot,” Jacas said.

The rookie second-round pick said that he’s enjoyed Vrabel’s tough love, knowing that means his head coach has high hopes.

“It’s great. Especially as a rookie, it gives me confidence knowing that I have a lot of room to grow,” Jacas said. “It just gives me the confidence to be the player that I know I can be.”

Vrabel said Saturday that he’s seen a more mature version of Brown in their second tenure together.

Brown didn’t know what to make of Vrabel’s coaching as a young rookie.

“I think just when I first got to the league, I think he was just trying to let me know how the game is played,” Brown said. “And it’s a week-to-week league, and you’ve got to come prepared each and every week. And it didn’t help that my first game I had 100 yards, and he was trying to bring me down. And next week I had a good play, a couple good plays, and the next week I had two touchdowns. And then I ran into Jalen Ramsey, and so his message hit home really quickly.

“It’s a week-to-week league. You can’t go into it just thinking that you’ve arrived as a young player. You’re building all this confidence, and it gets in your head really quickly. But his message drove home really quickly when I ran into those guys Week 4. I’ll never forget it.”

The Patriots have to be hoping for similar early-game success from Jacas. He’s currently set to back up outside linebackers Dre’Mont Jones at Elijah Ponder.

Jacas missed spring practices due to injury/contract negotiations. He didn’t sign his rookie contract until the first day of training camp then spent a week on the non-football injury list. The rookie appeared to play out of control in the Patriots’ three preseason games. He’ll need to acclimate quickly.

“I think he’s handling it really well,” Brown said. “I’m excited for him, as well. Man, he has a high motor. He goes hard each and every day. It’s very evident on the film. And I’m excited for him.”

The Patriots raved about Jacas’s pre-draft visit after he was selected in the second round during the spring. Vrabel has even delivered some tough messaging about Jacas through the media, critiquing his effort on special teams.