Patriots standout RB TreVeyon Henderson didn't want them to draft him. He was hoping for the Bears instead.

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — When TreVeyon Henderson came out of Ohio State as one of the top running back prospects in the draft, the last team he wanted to end up on was the Patriots. He hoped, instead, that the Bears would pick him.

It all worked out fine for Henderson when the Patriots took him in the second round at No. 38 overall, fourth at his position, and he’s about to wrap up an excellent rookie season by playing in Super Bowl LX on Sunday against the Seahawks.

But he had his doubts last spring after players and other people around the NFL warned him that the Patriots wouldn’t be a good destination. The Bears, who were very interested in Henderson, were one spot behind the Patriots, and when Henderson’s phone rang, he thought at first it was Ryan Poles and Ben Johnson.

“I had my certain expectations of teams that I thought I was going to end up with... and me not knowing anything at the time, I’m like, ‘Shoot, I want to dodge the Patriots at all costs,’” Henderson told the Sun-Times. “I had an interview with them and did really well, but I had no expectation that I was going to get drafted by New England.

“When it happened, I was smiling on the outside, but my heart was sinking.”

With Henderson off the board one pick ahead of them, the Bears drafted wide receiver Luther Burden III from Missouri. They took a running back in the seventh round, choosing Kyle Monangai out of Rutgers.

All three players were good as rookies. Henderson rushed for 911 yards and nine touchdowns and was a finalist for Offensive Rookie of the Year, while Monangai ran for 783 and five alongside 1,000-yard rusher D’Andre Swift. Burden caught 47 passes for 652 yards and two touchdowns.

Henderson said he had multiple meetings with Bears running backs coach Eric Bieniemy, who left last month to be the Chiefs’ offensive coordinator, before the draft and was very impressed by him and the type of offense the Bears planned to run. But landing with the Patriots didn’t turn out nearly as bad as he feared.

“I’m so grateful for my time here,” he said. “I’ve been enjoying it.”