As much as he wanted to stay with the New England Patriots, the team that gave him a chance to play and the region he came to adopt, when Randall Gay got the chance to go back home, he went for it.

Yesterday, the cornerback signed with the New Orleans Saints, who play about 90 miles from Gay’s hometown of Brusly, La.

Gay received a four-year deal from the Saints that could be worth as much as $17.8 million — $6.9 million of that is guaranteed.

“It’s bittersweet,” agent Albert Elias said last night. “He’s leaving a team that helped him get his shot, that helped him get started. So he’s sad one way, but in the other way, he’s going to the team he watched growing up as a kid.”

When negotiations with the Patriots stalled and Gay and Elias decided to test free agency, Gay stressed to Elias that he wanted to keep New England in play, keeping the relationship positive on the off-chance that Gay could rejoin the team down the road.

“It was business, and that’s part of the NFL. He’ll miss New England, definitely, but the Saints gave him financial security and the chance to compete for a starting spot,” Elias said. “No matter what, he has a role there.”

The small town of Brusly — population 2,020 and 2.2 square miles — is quite proud of their native son. Gay has been honored by the town on at least two occasions: before playing with the LSU Tigers in the 2004 Sugar Bowl, he had his own day, and after his rookie season, when he won Super Bowl XXXIX with New England, he was given a key to the town.

All quiet on the Moss front

As far as Randy Moss is concerned, it seems that no news is good news for Patriots followers.

Another day passed with no word from either side on the receiver’s status with New England. However, it was also another day of no information being leaked out from another club that it was making a move to acquire him either.

However, the NFL Network, which reported on Saturday that Moss was growing frustrated by his lack of progress with New England, reported yesterday that Moss had a standing offer from the Pats that he is close to signing.

ESPN reported that Moss apparently reached out to his former quarterback in Minnesota, Daunte Culpepper, to discuss the pair “finishing what they started” with the Vikings. However, the article states, that didn’t mean the duo would become a package deal. Culpepper has not been the same since an Oct. 2005 knee injury.

Quick kicks

Patriots safety Eugene Wilson made his first free-agent visit last night, to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and was scheduled to visit Pittsburgh today. … When NFL commissioner Roger Goodell discussed the findings on the six tapes New England surrendered during the Spygate investigation during Super Bowl week, he said that on one of the tapes, one of the coaches waved hello to the camera. Apparently, that coach was Herm Edwards when he was with the Jets. According to a New York Daily News story yesterday, Edwards and defensive coordinator Donnie Edwards spotted the camera during a 2004 game and gave a wave.

smanza@projo.com