Stefon Diggs brings ‘competitive spirit’ to Houston Texans receivers as training camp begins

HOUSTON (AP) — As a steady rain fell on the eighth day of Houston Texans training camp Saturday, Stefon Diggs lined up against rookie Kamari Lassiter for a one-on-one drill.

Diggs headed toward the sideline with Lassiter staying in step. As C.J. Stroud threw the deep pass, they fought. Diggs caught the pass over the shoulder with Lassiter’s left hand trying to break it up as the Texans fans in attendance cheered.

The Pro Bowl wide receiver posed in front of the stands in celebration for a second before congratulating a few fans.

It’s that competitive spirit from Diggs that second-year Texans coach DeMeco Ryans has seen spread to all the other wideouts early in camp.

“I really like the competitive spirit of all these guys,” Ryans said. “Seeing guys progress, different guys making plays every day. And it starts with Stefon and the way he comes to work, I think it rubs off on everybody. He comes with a competitive drive.”

Texans tight end Dalton Schultz, who signed a three-year, $36 million contract in the offseason to remain in Houston, has taken note of Diggs’ voice, the energy he brings and his sheer competitiveness.

“When he goes out there, he wants to win everything,” Schultz said. “He wants to win the race coming off the field. He’s just that kind of guy. When you surround yourself with guys like that, it’s contagious. He’s been really beneficial to the offense as a whole.”

Diggs is aiming for his seventh straight 1,000-yard season and is just five yards shy of 10,000 yards in his career when he arrives in Houston. Last season, he rushed for 1,183 yards and eight touchdowns for the Bills.

“No matter how successful you are, always try to bring as many people with you as possible,” Diggs said of his leadership role. “And you don’t want to turn your light off, or turn the light on other people, especially with those people, they’re really special. So, my main focus here is just fighting and competing at a high level.”

The competitive nature of the receivers room appears to have rubbed off on John Metchie III, who has made a handful of notable plays early in camp.

The third-year receiver overcame an ACL injury in college and a leukemia diagnosis during his first two years in the NFL and is off to a strong start as he tries to earn one of the receiver jobs.

“With Mechie, I see a guy that’s a lot faster, plays with more confidence,” Ryans said. “You see the guy he was at Alabama. You see that explosiveness. It’s starting to show. He made a lot of plays early in camp, but he continues to make plays.”

Diggs isn’t the only 1,000-yard receiver in the room, as Nico Collins is coming off his first game and was Stroud’s top option in 2023. Texans general manager Nick Caserio signed Collins to a three-year, $72 million contract extension in the offseason after a 1,297-yard, eight-touchdown regular season.

With two 1,000-yard receivers, then add Tank Dell (who had 709 receiving yards when he suffered a season-ending leg injury in Week 13), Noah Brown, Robert Woods, Xavier Hutchinson and offseason addition Ben Skowronek, it’s a competitive group.

“There’s a lot of hungry players and guys that have played a really good game in their careers and are ready to win and eat,” Stroud said of the receivers. “So it’s really exciting. We’re just trying to build that chemistry and timing right now and it’s going pretty well so far.”

Ryans added: “I love the competition. It’s a really good group and I’m looking forward to seeing how the guys perform in the games.”

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