INDIANAPOLIS --- Indianapolis Colts safety Mike Adams is entering his 11th season in the NFL, and this one is similar to his first when he came out of Delaware undrafted in 2004. A decade later, Adams finds himself competing for playing time once again.
"You get evaluated everyday. I get evaluated the way I walk down these halls, the way I eat," Adams said laughingly Monday after practice. "That's the nature of the beast, nature of this business."
Adams started opposite LaRon Landry at safety Saturday night against the Giants, with his competition Delano Howell inactive. That gave Adams, Sergio Brown, and Colt Anderson extra snaps in the battle to start with Landry week one against the Denver Broncos, the team Adams played for last season.
"I thought it was okay, always can do better," Adams said of his performance in the Colts 2nd preseason game. "It's never what you want, because I'm a competitor. You always want to do better. Even if you catch four picks, you still want five."
Adams turned 33-years-old in March. Colts head coach Chuck Pagano said in the offseason before the team signed Adams, he told Pagano all he wanted was a chance to make the team. He's getting that chance, with the first roster cuts a week from Tuesday, when NFL teams must shrink their rosters from 90 to 75 players.
"I'm still progressing. I'm not content," said Adams, who did not record a tackle against the Giants Saturday but was credited with a forced fumble on special teams kickoff coverage. "I'm not satisfied. I'm continuing to get better everyday watching film, critiquing myself, getting better, being hard on myself, as well as the coaches being hard on me."
The 10-year veteran has played in all 16 games six times in his career, having played in at least 14 games every year except his rookie season, when he was promoted from the San Francisco 49ers practice squad midseason in 2004.
So what's the goal for Adams with the Colts in 2014?
"The goal is to be there in February and be healthy. That's the main goal."
