EXCLUSIVE

A rep for the Pats tells us ... the team happily shelled out roughly $250,000 to make sure any fan who had a Hernandez jersey could get a free replacement featuring a Pats player who's not currently facing murder charges.
We're told ... of the 2,500ish people who showed up to the stadium for the swap event, 30% of the fans were kids requesting new youth jerseys.
So, who was the most requested?? The honor goes to 5-time Pro Bowler VINCE WILFORK -- a 325-pound BEAST of a defensive tackle!!
Don't worry, Brady came in 2nd ... and we have a theory as to why -- everyone in Boston already has a Brady jersey.
FYI -- Tim Tebow wasn't in the top 5.

