The Rams did not need one perfect move to make their veteran plan look smart. They may be getting validation from two at once.
Davante Adams has been on the field for all five games, and the production has followed. Tyler Higbee, meanwhile, is turning back the clock in his 11th season after a knee injury nearly wiped out his 2024 finish and lingered into the offseason. Put together, the two storylines point to the same thing: Los Angeles is leaning on experience, and that approach is holding up.
Adams is the cleaner case. The Rams gave serious consideration to adding A.J. Brown at one point, but the choice to go with Adams is looking better by the week. Through five games, Adams has 443 receiving yards, which is 56 percent of his 2025 production, and he has caught 27 of 45 passes thrown his way for 441 yards and four touchdowns. He is also catching 60 percent of his targets and averaging 88.2 yards per game.
That kind of workload mattered while the Rams waited for Puka Nacua to return. Adams was the offensive workhorse in that stretch, and he has stayed available while Brown has not. Brown has suited up for only one game this season and has just three receptions for 26 yards. The contrast is hard to miss, especially when the Rams’ own decision tree included Brown before Adams became the answer.
Higbee’s case is different, but it lands in the same place. The Rams tight end had his knee taken out by Lions safety Kerby Joseph in a 2024 playoff game, missed most of the next season, and was still dealing with lingering effects from the injury this offseason. Even so, he is leading Rams tight ends this season.
That matters more because of the state of the position group around him. Terrance Ferguson is currently on injured reserve and is eligible to return in Week 8, which means Higbee’s role as a pass-catcher could change later in the year. For now, though, the Rams are getting a steady veteran presence from a player who has already shown he can do more than survive on the roster.
Higbee has four seasons of at least 500 receiving yards, and he closed 2023 with 495 despite missing two games. Last season, he finished with 25 catches for 281 yards and three touchdowns, a line shaped by injury but still productive when he was on the field. This year, the signs of a fuller return are clearer: he has recorded at least five catches and 60 receiving yards in each of his last three games.
The pace reflects that. Higbee is on track for 68 receptions, 762 yards and three touchdowns. That would fit neatly with the version of him the Rams have relied on for years, not just the one who was trying to get back from a major injury.
So the Rams’ veteran judgment is showing up in two places at once. Adams has given them a durable, high-volume receiver while Brown has been sidelined. Higbee has given them production and stability at tight end after a brutal injury stretch. Different players, different circumstances, same result: the Rams are getting real value from the older hands they chose to trust.