On Saturday night, the Buffalo Bills defeated the Los Angeles Chargers, securing their third straight victory since their bye week. With a record of 9-6, Sean McDermott’s team has salvaged a season that was on the verge of collapse just a few weeks ago. Now, they have a 62 percent chance of making the playoffs and a remote chance of winning the AFC East.
Thus, despite what some people in the world think, the media doesn’t only love to be negative for the sake of being negative. However, in the victory over the Chargers, wide receiver Stefon Diggs only managed five receptions for 29 yards. Diggs failed to reach 100 yards receiving for the eighth straight game.
Of course, during that time, former offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey was let go. Although Joe Brady, the interim offensive coordinator, appears to have performed well enough to be given the full-time position, Diggs has only caught 19 passes for 175 yards and a touchdown in four games since the play caller switch. In contrast, Diggs caught 31 catches for 399 yards and four touchdowns in the season’s first four games—far more consistent with the three-time Pro Bowler’s reputation.
From a team standpoint, it’s heartening that the Bills appear to have understood that it’s not possible to expect Josh Allen, the quarterback, and receiver Dillon Diggs to put in extraordinary performances every week. Reversing course James Cook Despite a few too many mistakes for his own benefit, he has shown promise and could become a star. Gabe Davis, a wide receiver, is still a boom-or-bust talent, but on Saturday night he showed off by hauling in four passes for 130 yards and a touchdown against the Chargers. This season, rookie tight end Dalton Kincaid has displayed glimpses of Pro Bowl potential. For the Bills, diversifying offensively was an essential step forward.
Even still, it’s difficult to believe Diggs is satisfied with his performance over the previous nine games, given he has only four times gone over 50 yards receiving. It will be reasonable to wonder if Diggs will be interested in sticking with the Bills if they fail to make it to the Super Bowl, reinstate McDermott as coach, and remove Brady’s temporary title as offensive coordinator.
Remember, this is a player who, after five seasons, forced his way out of Minnesota, most likely because he felt the Vikings weren’t getting the best out of him. Even so, he has exceeded 1,000 yards receiving for six straight seasons in 2023; however, keep in mind that the first two of those seasons were in Minnesota, and he remained dissatisfied.
Furthermore, it’s not clear if the Bills’ July success in getting Diggs back into the lineup was a permanent solution. When Diggs failed to show up for the required minicamp, McDermott first acknowledged he was “very concerned,” but later on, when the former All-Pro receiver did show up, he backed off. But something happened there, and you have to worry if those problems will resurface if the Bills suffer another sad postseason departure this year, one that may involve anything other than a trip to the Super Bowl.
When Buffalo lost to the Denver Broncos in Week 10 of the NFL, Trevon Diggs, the younger brother of Stefon Diggs, tweeted, “Man 14.” Gotta get up and go outta there, he said, alluding to his brother who plays for the Bills. On X, the social networking site that was formerly known as Twitter, the post is still live. Maybe this was a younger sibling wishing for his older brother to exist through trading with his current employer. However, Trevon most likely would have remained silent if he had thought that Stefon was content with his circumstances in Buffalo. And if Stefon had a serious issue with the post, he could have requested him to remove it.
Diggs’ incredible run of play in the last two weeks of the regular season and during the playoffs may solve all of this. Diggs will return for the next season if he helps the Bills make a parade float. Even if the Bills have become more competitive, you have to question if the 30-year-old, if he no longer believes he will be a 100+ yard receiver every week, will be content to play out his remaining prime years in Buffalo.
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