In his first interview as a Patriot, running back Ezekiel Elliott revealed Tuesday why he chose New England at the end of a long courtship with multiple teams in free agency.

“Just the importance of the backs in this offense,” he told team media. “This is definitely a team that wants to run the ball, wants to be balanced.”

Elliott also expounded on his growing relationship with Mac Jones, whom he went to dinner with during his free-agent visit three weeks ago.

“Mac’s a pro,” Elliott said. “He does everything like a pro. I could tell just from going to dinner with him on my visit. He’s a great leader.”

Earlier Tuesday, Patriots rookie cornerback Christian Gonzalez said Tuesday it’s “crazy” to be teammates with Elliott. Gonzalez, a Dallas area native, also shared he owned his jersey growing up. The first-rounder has spent the last three practices with Elliott, who sat out of Saturday’s preseason game at Green Bay.

Also speaking on Elliott, Pats safety Adrian Phillips said the Pro Bowl back has been reaching out to teammates every day in the locker room. Phillips added that running backs who can catch the ball like him sometimes force the defense to “spin the whole scheme around” so they’re properly covered. … Before practice, Pats coach Bill Belichick assessed the play of offensive lineman Bill Murray, who served as the backup right tackle last week in Green Bay. Since converting from defense to offense last year, Murray has spent most of his time at guard: “I thought Bill did a good job. … They have a couple good edge players, and he was competitive against them.” … The Patriots will hold their final training camp practice of the summer on Wednesday at 1 p.m.