NFL free agency officially begins Thursday at 4 p.m., an exciting time on the calendar that demands wall-to-wall coverage from the media and broadcast partners that cover the league.

NFL Network is covering what it calls “’’Free Agency Frenzy’’ with 25 on-air analysts, hosts, and reporters throughout the week. ESPN is beginning its free agency countdown at 2 p.m. Thursday, and its coverage will include — no joke — a “Schefter Cam’’ on the network’s lead NFL reporter, Adam Schefter.

Just don’t expect the Patriots to participate in the “frenzy.’’

Oh, they’ll be active this week and for the rest of the month. They began building for 2017 on Wednesday by trading for Colts tight end Dwayne Allen, a third-round pick in 2012 who has scored 19 touchdowns in five seasons.

But their signings won’t exactly be frenetic.

This is how the Patriots have kicked off free agency the last few years:

2016: Linebacker Ramon Humber.

2015: Receivers Brian Tyms and Brandon Gibson.

2014: Tight end Michael Hoomanawanui.

The Patriots aren’t afraid of signing free agents and adding veterans, and often thrive on it. Bill Belichick even seems to prefer signing free agents over the crap shoot that is the draft.

“It’s a lot easier to evaluate pro free agents than it is college kids because you see them playing in the NFL,’’ Belichick said last year. “You see them playing against the same guys that we play against every week, so it’s much easier to make that evaluation.’’

So this is our yearly reminder that the Patriots generally don’t make the big splashy signings, and instead proceed methodically throughout free agency, looking for value signings and players that fit their system — players like Allen, who will make just about the same money that Martellus Bennett did last year (about $5 million).

Don’t panic if the Patriots don’t make a big play on the first day or two of free agency. It’s going to be OK.

The teams that usually make those big signings are the desperate ones that don’t make the playoffs (think Ndamukong Suh going to Miami for $60 million a couple of years ago, and Brock Osweiler signing with Houston for $37 million guaranteed last year). Championship teams with perhaps the greatest coach and quarterback of all time don’t have to make big headlines in March.

The Patriots view the initial wave of free agency as a three-week process. Then there’s the draft in late April, another round of free agency in the late spring, and a constant roster churn during training camp and the early part of the regular season.

“We always have the mind-set here to try and improve our team however we can,’’ Belichick said last year. “That goes from the last day of the 2015 season to until the last day of the 2016 season.’’

The Patriots have a lot of work to do this month. They have 55 players under contract and north of $50 million in salary cap space. They have major free agents in linebacker Dont’a Hightower, cornerback Logan Ryan, defensive tackle Alan Branch, Bennett, and others. If the Patriots don’t re-sign those players, they’ll have to find replacements.

The Patriots don’t take part in the frenzy, but they aren’t afraid of signing a free agent immediately. In 2015, Devin McCourty signed his massive contract extension two days before the start of the league year. That same year, the Patriots signed Jabaal Sheard on the third day of free agency, though the deal started coming together a few days earlier. On the first day in 2010, the Patriots signed Vince Wilfork to a $40 million deal.

But history shows they will be patient over the next three weeks as they fill their roster holes.

In 2016, the league year opened on March 9, and the only signing that day was Humber, a backup linebacker who wound up being cut in training camp. Chris Hogan signed on March 11 for $12 million over three years, a move that didn’t exactly make waves nationally. The Chandler Jones trade went down on March 15, and the Bennett trade on March 17. Chris Long and Shea McClellin were signed on March 18. LeGarrette Blount wasn’t signed until April 12, and Dominique Easley was released on April 13.

Those were all major moves that factored into the Patriots’ Super Bowl run.

The Patriots were fairly quiet in 2015 after releasing Darrelle Revis and Brandon Browner and re-signing McCourty. The league year began on March 10, and Sheard was signed on March 12, Scott Chandler on March 16, and Branch on March 18. Everyone else was roster filler and didn’t make the team.

The Patriots were active in 2014, signing several major free agents. The signings just didn’t happen right away.

The league year began on March 11, and the first signing was Hoomanawanui, the third tight end. But they signed Browner on March 15, Revis and Brandon LaFell on March 18, and Patrick Chung on April 3.

They also let Julian Edelman test the market, and after a week in free agency, re-signed him to a four-year deal on March 18.

Edelman and McCourty both serve as good reminders for fans worried about losing Hightower and Bennett. The Patriots often allow players to hit the market, and tell them to stay in touch.

“It’s not like if a guy gets to free agency you can’t re-sign him,’’ Belichick said during the 2016 season. “These guys know that they have other options, depending on who the player is and what their situation is, but they have other options.

“And again, we know there’s only so much money to go around. They have their options, and we have our options. That’s professional sports.’’

The Patriots probably will lose some of their free agents. The markets for Hightower, Ryan, Bennett, and Blount should be robust. But they have a plan, they’ll work through it methodically, and they certainly won’t get caught up in any frenzy on Thursday.

Ben Volin can be reached at ben.volin@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @BenVolin