For the first time in his career, Deatrich Wise was a free agent this offseason.
Ultimately, he returned to New England on a reported four-year deal worth up to $30 million.
Speaking via video conference Thursday, Wise described the process.
“I didn’t know what was going on, to be honest," he said. "I just wanted to hit free agency just to see what was going on — doing the whole process. I ended up figuring that this was going to be the best place to come back to. I wanted to come back and I am happy that I did.”
Wise was selected by the Patriots in the fourth round of the 2017 draft and has spent the last four years as a member of the organization.
“The free agency [process] was kind of cool, just hearing what people had to say -- what their pros and cons were, what they saw me as, whether it was from their mouth or their mouth through my agents mouth," Wise said. "Just hearing that was kind of interesting.
"Then, one of the things that brought me back here was I just love the atmosphere here, the culture here that Bill Belichick and [Robert] Kraft and all the coaches and players have created. I feel like this place is second to none when it comes to the mindset and culture of success.”
The Patriots added a number of new players to their front seven this offseason, which Wise is looking forward to being part of.
