The buzz at training camp on those Tuesday morning practices in the August heat just hasn’t been there the last few years.
That’s going to change in 2025.
Not just because of the hope Drake Maye has brought to the fan base or the big name defensive free agent signings, but because the Patriots finally have a new No. 1 wide receiver for the (hopefully) franchise QB.
Adam Schefter reported a deal had been reached with Stefon Diggs for three years and $69 million dollars, including $26 million guaranteed.
Entering his 11th NFL season coming off a torn ACL at 31 going on 32 years old, it’s hard to picture this as anything but a low risk, high reward signing for the Patriots.
Where Diggs is currently at, he probably won’t be playing early in the season, which means he’s not really going to be in a position to be a ‘diva’ and demand the ball. But, you’re getting a guy that Josh Allen has credited time and time again for his development to work alongside Maye every day. The receiver room’s current veteran leader is Kendrick Bourne, so that room is getting an upgrade in leadership too, no disrespect to Bourne, Diggs just has seniority. He could be invaluable to guys like Kayshon Boutte, Demario Douglas, Ja’Lynn Polk and Javon Baker, who all probably grew up admiring Diggs and using him in Madden.
Once getting on the field, Diggs is a guy that could play with a chip on his shoulder to show he’s still got something left in the tank. While his market probably wasn’t all that great, the fact he was willing to sign in Foxboough is important too. Wanting to be part of a ‘rebuild’ at 32 certainly doesn’t seem like an appealing situation on the surface, so maybe Diggs believes the team is better than many may think.
There’s no denying how good he’s been throughout his career. Diggs has 10, 491 yards on 857 catches in his career to go with 70 touchdowns. He’s a four-time Pro Bowler and before last year’s injury, played at least 13 games every year of his career, including all 17 in 2021 and 2023.
The jerseys will be out there. Maye. Diggs. Gonzalez. Williams. Spillane (he’s just got New Englander written all over him). The primetime games will almost certainly return. The traffic at 8:00 p.m. after a 1:00 p.m. game will unfortunately, but necessarily return.
The buzz will be back in Foxboough this summer and maybe, just maybe, Diggs deciding to head down Rte. 1 with the current state of the team indicates the league may be taking notice of what’s coming, even if no one can physically see it yet.