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Stay or Go: Colts Free Agency 2017 Edition

By Luke Schultheis

Aug 27, 2016; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Indianapolis Colts cornerback Darius Butler (20) celebrates with safety Mike Adams (29) after intercepting a pass against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports
Aug 27, 2016; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Indianapolis Colts cornerback Darius Butler (20) celebrates with safety Mike Adams (29) after intercepting a pass against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports /
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Dec 24, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Indianapolis Colts strong safety Mike Adams (29) warms up before the game against the Oakland Raiders at the Oakland Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 24, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Indianapolis Colts strong safety Mike Adams (29) warms up before the game against the Oakland Raiders at the Oakland Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports /

Mike Adams, Safety

Set to turn 36 years old in March, re-signing Mike Adams would be nothing more than a stopgap for the Colts at safety.

The 13-year veteran has remained rock solid for the Colts though, as he started in 15 games last season and recorded 79 tackles, 2 forced fumbles, and 2 interceptions.

Dec 5, 2016; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; Indianapolis Colts strong safety Mike Adams (29) intercepts a pass against the New York Jets and returns it in the second half at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 5, 2016; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; Indianapolis Colts strong safety Mike Adams (29) intercepts a pass against the New York Jets and returns it in the second half at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports /

While Adams didn’t make the Pro Bowl for a 3rd straight season in Indianapolis–having had 10 interceptions combined in consecutive seasons previously, he’s a veteran leader for the defense and his play recognition remains exceptional for the Colts secondary.

Per Pro Football Focus (subscription), Adams ranked as their 20th best safety overall with a +83.3 grade overall–which means ‘Pops’ is still playing at a pretty high level.

That being said, the Colts need to get younger, faster, and more athletic in their defense as a whole–while Adams is a bit slow for the position. Also, it’s a fair question of whether the grizzled veteran may eventually see a dip in performance–playing one of the most physically demanding positions in the NFL.

Still, the Colts don’t exactly have a multitude of replacement options in the pipeline.

While young safety Clayton Geathers has the makings of a star–he’s already penciled into the safety spot starting alongside Adams (and could eventually move to inside linebacker), while rookie T.J. Green remains a major project for the Colts–having struggled in coverage and committed a number of bonehead mistakes.

It’s possible that the Colts could opt to re-sign nickelback Darius Butler instead of Adams and deploy him as their new starting safety going forward–as he flashed a lot of potential at the position in 2016.

However, for the price of what he was making last year at $2.2M, Adams would be a nice cost efficient insurance policy should no other improved options arise–especially on likely just a one-year deal.

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