"In one of the most memorable moments of training camp, Browns veteran Mike Adams boldly told a large group of reporters he had been overlooked and underrated throughout his career and vowed not to relinquish the starting job at free safety without a fight.

Adams, 30, kept his word by holding off free-agent acquisition and fellow safety Usama Young, 26. Adams will go wire-to-wire as a starter, completing his mission Sunday when the Browns (4-11) host the Pittsburgh Steelers (11-4) in the regular-season finale for both teams.

"I'm happy the way it played out," said Adams, who's in his eighth NFL season. "I still left some plays on the field that I would like to have back, any player would like to have back. I think I did a good job getting my corners lined up, taking in the defense and understanding it. And next year [I'll] probably be back to Square One, and I'll be making the same speech all over again."

Adams, though, doesn't know where he'll be competing for a job in 2012 because he's scheduled to become a free agent after this season. He said his agent has had preliminary contract talks with the Browns, but negotiations have yet to go any further.

"If there's change, I'm going to have to embrace it," said Adams, whose base salary this season was $1.1 million. "But obviously, I love this locker room, the DBs. This is the first time I've ever been around a group where the whole secondary was still intact from Day One. First time in my whole career I've ever seen it. We became tight just because of that, and that builds chemistry on the field."

Adams has also developed a role as a leader and one of the locker room's de facto spokesmen. On Friday, the local chapter of the Pro Football Writers of America named Adams the winner of the Dino Lucarelli Good Guy Award for his cooperation with the media and for the way he carries himself in the community and with his teammates.

"I always try to tell the truth and tell as much as I can without giving any secrets away," Adams said. "I try to be as honest as possible, straightforward and just try to say what I'm feeling, and I guess a lot of people respect that.""