Not Akeem Ayers. The linebacker, acquired by the Patriots in a trade with Tennessee Oct. 22, thought he had too much work to do to book a five-day vacation. Ayers did manage to sneak away for a few days, but only because the arrival of his belongings was delayed, and only after making sure to pack his playbook.

FOXBOROUGH — Last week’s bye gave the Patriots an opportunity to take their minds off football for a few days. Almost all took advantage, jetting to warmer climates for some down time, beach time, even time for a little football, with a handful of players attending college and high school games.


“I’ve just been trying to study as much as I can,” Ayers said Tuesday, after the Patriots practiced for the first time since the long weekend in preparation for Sunday night’s game at Indianapolis. “The whole transition has been smooth: Moving, new teammates, new city, new team.

“I’ve had a lot of help from the players in this locker room, the coaches. Everybody’s been helping me with the process. It’s been really good.”

So has Ayers, who needed just one game to convince the coaching staff that he was ready to start.

Against the Broncos Nov. 2, Ayers started alongside Dont’a Hightower and Jamie Collins at linebacker, played 74 of 80 snaps, and sacked Peyton Manning. That came after his 32-snap, 5-tackle, 1-sack debut for the Patriots in the Week 8 win over Chicago.

“I’m playing more than I expected,” Ayers said. When asked why, he said, “I don’t know, maybe it’s because the coaches believe in me and believe that I can play. They threw me in there early on, wanted to see how I’d do.

“Every game I’m doing better and better, each rep, so I guess that’s the way I can show them I can play that many snaps. It progresses from there.”


Ayers was accustomed to playing the majority of the snaps with the Titans until this season, when a new coach (Ken Whisenhunt) and the team’s switch to a 3-4 base defense left him on the sideline or, even worse, inactive. Ayers played in just two of Tennessee’s first seven games before being traded.

Four days after joining his new team, Ayers was playing for the Patriots. He said then that learning a new system was his all-encompassing focus. Now, three weeks after the deal, how would Ayers describe his comfort level?

“There’s still so much I’ve got to learn,” he said. “I’m not to the level where I could take a couple days off or take the week off and come back and it’s still fresh. But I think I catch on pretty quick.

“For the most part, I feel like I’m up to speed. I think I’m getting better each week, learning more each week, and it’s becoming more fluent for me.”

Jerod Mayo’s season-ending knee injury left the Patriots thin at linebacker. Mayo was hurt Oct. 12 at Buffalo, and the Patriots didn’t have enough time to find an outside replacement before the next game, since it came four days later against the Jets. New York ran for 218 yards, the most given up by the Patriots this season.

Bringing Ayers into the mix was timely. With two sacks in two games, it’s also been immediately positive, especially with the absence of edge pass rusher Chandler Jones. Both sacks by Ayers (against Manning and Jay Cutler) were for 9-yard losses; his takedown of Manning came on fourth down, which brought a change of possession, which preceded a Patriots touchdown.


“From what I’ve seen, he works really hard and was just waiting for an opportunity,” said Patriots linebacker coach Patrick Graham. “When he got here, the opportunity has presented itself and he capitalized on it.

“We try our best as coaches to give them good information, to put them in the right position, but it’s up to the individual player to get the job done.”

Ayers has immersed himself into football, but getting traded and switching cities means plenty of off-field issues to deal with: finding a place to live, using a moving company to transport personal items, becoming acclimated to new people, making sure you’re where you’re supposed to be, and won’t get lost driving there.

Ayers was living out of one small suitcase the first two weeks, and wasn’t reunited with his belongings until earlier this week.

The bye came at a good time for Ayers, then. He said he spent time each day studying the defensive schemes, but used the free weekend to regain some control in what’s been a chaotic three-week stretch.

“I really haven’t had time to sit and get everything organized,” Ayers said. “But work is the focus. I try to keep it fresh in my head, so I made sure I looked over it a few hours a day. I don’t want to fall further behind.”


Michael Whitmer can be reached at mwhitmer@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeWhitmer.