FOXBOROUGH -- Michael Matthews is probably going to do a little redecorating.

The former Giants’ tight end -- who won a title with New York in Super Bowl XLII -- has what he calls a “Super Bowl shrine” at his house. In that collection of mementos is a picture of him from that game delivering a block to Patriots’ outside linebacker Adalius Thomas.

“Now, I’m probably going to take that picture down because I’m a Patriot,” Matthews said with a sheepish grin Thursday.

Matthews is one of a few new veterans the Patriots were able to pick up in the days leading up to the regular-season opener against the Bills, a group that includes offensive lineman Kendall Simmons.

The head-spinning process of landing in a new city, having to absorb a new playbook and getting acclimated to a new franchise can be a lot to handle, especially for a player like Matthews, who had played with just one franchise since coming out of college.

But Matthews said Thursday the transition has been an easy one.

“Ever since I’ve been here, I’ve felt very welcome,” he said. “Everyone’s been nice to me. I’m just trying to get to know the guys a little bit. It’s pretty much a welcoming environment here for new players -- that’s a good thing. You don’t have to figure out ‘Who’s this guy?’ Everyone has been pretty welcoming and friendly.”

Matthews, who was dealt to New England on Saturday for a conditional draft pick in 2011, played in all 37 regular-season and playoff games for the Giants the last two seasons since signing as an undrafted free agent in 2007, and joins a tight end crew that includes Benjamin Watson and Chris Baker. A 6-foot-4, 270-pounder known primarily as a blocker, he had eight catches in two seasons.

“It was very shocking -- I kind of really wasn’t anticipating that whole transaction,” said the 26-year-old Matthews when asked about how he heard about the deal. “But it is what it is. This is football. I was excited to have a job, first and foremost, and to be able to provide for my family. I’m excited to be here and start getting to work.”

A Georgia Tech product, Matthews will wear No. 80, and is well-aware of what it means to follow in the footsteps of New England legend Troy Brown.

“I found out very quick -- I found out very quick,” Matthews said. “I do remember watching him play. He was a great player. Before, when I was with the Giants, I wore number 88 -- that was Ike Hilliard’s number, and so I had big shoes to fill there, too. I have big shoes to fill here with the number 80, too.”

The Patriots signed Simmons as a free agent on Sept. 6. A former first-round pick of the Steelers in 2002, he had played his entire career with Pittsburgh, appearing in 80 career regular-season games until last season, when the 6-foot-3, 315-pounder played in just four games after rupturing his Achilles.

Until the Patriots called, the offseason was a frustrating time for the 30-year-old -- other than New England, the only team to call was Buffalo.

“It was one of those situations where you look at an Achilles injury and people automatically think that it’s a career-ender,” Simmons said. “But you don’t get a chance to go show people you’re healthy and do what you do, and that was the frustrating part, because I knew where I was physically and I knew I could still do it. But it wasn’t happening.

“And to me, the Lord taught me a little bit of patience -- it’ll happen when I decide it to. You just have to sit back and keep doing what you’re doing and enjoy your family for the time being, and I did. And everything started picking up this past week, and that was just exciting to me. This has been great. I don’t care where I’m at right now. I’m just enjoying that somebody gave me another chance.”

Simmons was able to get some background on the Patriots from college buddy and former New England fullback Heath Evans. That’s why he was so surprised to get the call from the Patriots, who have consistently used the same five starting offensive linemen for the last several years.

“They have a good offensive line, and I wasn’t really expecting it at all, because they’ve got a group that’s been together for a while,” said Simmons, who currently projects as a backup guard to starters Logan Mankins and Stephen Neal. “When Coach Belichick told me to come up here and wanted me for more than a year, that definitely was a ‘Yes, I’ve gottta stay here’ for me.”

While he sounded optimistic about his physical state, Simmons confessed Thursday that he’s still not where he needs to be when it comes to his conditioning level.

“It’s going to take a while. It’s slowly coming,” he said. “My biggest concern right now is just the physical aspect of it. Yesterday was my first time hitting and putting pads on in a year. It’s kind of like training camp for me.

“Learning the plays is not a big problem, because I’m starting to pick that up. It’s just getting the stamina and endurance up to where everybody else is.”