5 with Gary Guyton

FOXBOROUGH -- Five questions with Georgia Tech linebacker Gary Guyton, who signed with the Patriots as a rookie free agent:

Football wise, how are you approaching your opportunity with the Patriots?
“It’s exciting. I’m just planning to be a sponge and learning from everybody there. They have a great defensive core that is filled with veterans. I’m young. To be coached up under Coach Belichick, Coach Pees, or Coach Patricia, it’s a great experience. One of my coaches is actually from that area, and he was telling me that these guys are really, really fierce about football, so be prepared to work your tail off. That is nothing new to me.”

What was the draft like for you? How disappointing was it to not be drafted?
“It was a little disappointing. It’s a long process and you hear this and that about where you may go, then when it doesn’t happen it’s kind of a shock. You just have to keep pushing off. It’s a situation where being a free agent isn’t all that bad because now I had a chance to pick where I wanted to go. I know the Patriots have a great legacy and I want to be a part of it.”

You had performed well in various tests at the Combine. How do you sum up performing that well and not being drafted, and if you could do something better now, what would it be?
“I felt like I was one of the top performers there. I still do believe I am a top performer now. I was nervous at first, but after a while, it was, ‘You know what you can do, so go show everyone’. It was a great experience. I’d do it the same way all over again. In terms of doing better, I’d like to run a 3.8 [laughter].”

How did it work with deciding to come to New England? It seems like you had a lot of choices, and almost ended up in San Francisco.
“I had quite a few [choices]. The decision came down to looking at my options and saying ‘OK, this is New England. This option and this chance doesn’t come too many times.’ At the end of the day, that was the bottom line for me.”

Have you been to New England before?
“No. Actually, the furthest north I’ve been is Minnesota. I’ve been looking forward to checking out the Boston area. I’m just hoping to stick around, make the team, and I’m ready to play. Right now, I just feel like I’m living a dream.”