East Providence’s Jamie Silva (44) said he was disappointed not to be drafted, but he was happy to sign with the Colts.

AP / Winslow Townson

Despite having been passed over through the seven rounds of last weekend’s NFL Draft, Jamie Silva, a former Boston College star and the pride of East Providence, has found employment with a team — and a pretty good one, at that.

Silva signed with the Indianapolis Colts in the hours after the draft concluded, and while local fans may be disappointed that a native son ended up with one of the New England Patriots’ biggest rivals, it is a good place for the rookie safety.

Silva’s agent, Scott Smith, said eight teams inquired about signing Silva as an undrafted free agent.

“I had some choices, but I thought Indianapolis was the best situation as far as depth for safeties, as well as they’re a good team, a good organization,” Silva said last night.

Not only are the Colts a winning team, but they play a Tampa-2 defense, a scheme perfected by head coach Tony Dungy. While the Tampa-2 favors speedy defensive backs, it also requires hard hitters who can give a lot of run support. The scheme also gives defensive backs less ground to cover by dropping the middle linebacker into deep coverage.

Silva is considered a bit undersized for a safety at 5-foot-10, 204 pounds, but Colts strong safety Bob Sanders is listed at 5-8 and was named the league’s defensive player of the year last season.

Indy has only one other strong safety currently on the roster, Matt Giordano.

But proving himself isn’t new to Silva. After an All-State career with the Townies, Boston College and Indiana were the only Division I-A programs to show interest in him. Despite the lukewarm reception at the highest level of college football, Silva felt he belonged there and worked to show that he did.

He was a first-team All-American for the Eagles last fall.

Silva was projected to be taken in the later rounds on Sunday, but five rounds passed without his name scrolling across the television screen.

“Yeah, you know, I was disappointed a little bit ” not to be drafted, Silva said. “I felt like … I don’t know. I was hoping to get drafted, but I think it worked out pretty well.”

Throughout the predraft process, as he was poked and prodded by medical staffs, ran 40-yard dashes and went through cone drills, Silva expressed a longing to get back to playing football.

And he will, later this week. He leaves for Indianapolis on Thursday to take part in the Colts’ rookie mini-camp this weekend.

“I’m definitely excited to actually get out there and start playing football,” Silva said.

smanza@projo.com