Rams' Davante Adams is no ordinary No. 2 receiver (with apologies to Stefon Diggs)

Even as Davante Adams had, by his standards, a down 2025 season for the Los Angeles Rams, there was arguably no one better where it counted most, in the red zone. Check that: there's no arguably about it. No one was better, and it wasn't all that close:

Free agent WR Stefon Diggs may have something to say about that. "You can't name a No. 2 [receiver] better than me," he claimed in a recent video on his YouTube channel.

To be sure, Diggs is still a high-end receiver even as his career declines. At least in principle, most teams would love to have him as their second option in the passing game (paying him in free agency is evidently a little different).

He's just not Adams, and there's no shame in that. DA is no ordinary WR2.

Adams is No. 1 at what he does (and a darn good WR2)

Doubling up on the next-closest receiver in red-zone separation win-rate is an emphatic statement of Adams' dominance in the money area of the field. Despite competing with Puka Nacua for targets, who is a top-two receiver on a bad day, Adams secured 12 of his 14 touchdowns when the Rams needed it most. 

His season stat line - 60 catches for 789 yards in 14 games - was hardly mind-boggling, but the fact that 23.3 percent of his receptions found the end zone, well, that is. If Adams can stay healthy this season, there is no reason he can't build up his volume numbers while remaining a magnet in the red zone.

Diggs had a fine year himself as the Patriots' top option, finishing with 85 catches, 1,013 yards, and four touchdowns. He played all 17 games. Which receiver would you rather have?

The answer is obvious for Rams fans, and frankly, there are more than a handful of projected No. 2's that any reasonable person could rank ahead of Diggs at this stage of his career (talent talks, so why hasn't he signed yet?). 

For kicks, here's one possible list, arranged in no particular order.

• Davante Adams, Rams
• George Pickens, Cowboys
• Jameson Williams, Lions
• Jaylen Waddle, Broncos
• Tee Higgins, Bengals
• Jordan Addison, Vikings
• DJ Moore, Bills*

*Admittedly, Moore did not have an eye-popping season in Chicago last season. Watch what he does with Josh Allen in Buffalo. We'll see. 

Trolling aside, Adams is not some aging scrub limping his way out the door. At 33, he is getting up there, of course, but with a chance for training-camp reps with Matthew Stafford this season - unlike last year - watch out. That telepathic connection between the two future Hall of Famers should get off to a seamless start.

If Diggs or anyone else thinks Adams is just another No. 2 target, let's just say they've got another thing coming.

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