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Buffalo Sports News

Bills Rumors: Buffalo Must Avoid Stefon Diggs Free-Agent Reunion

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Bills Stefon Diggs

The Buffalo Bills have been busy in free agency, but they’re still in the market for another wide receiver ahead of the 2025 NFL season. Yet, it still came as a surprise to many in Bills Mafia when Stefon Diggs emerged as part of that discussion this week.

Let’s be clear: none of the league’s main insiders have linked Diggs to the Bills so far. Instead, people are reading between the lines to see whether it’s possible the four-time Pro Bowler could be returning for a second stint in Orchard Park. Dan Mitchell of Roundtable Sports provided a breakdown of the rumors and speculation:

It’s generated a lot of conversation about whether general manager Brandon Beane should consider a reunion as Buffalo attempts to hunt down the franchise’s first Super Bowl title.

Bills, Stefon Diggs No Longer A Free-Agent Match

Diggs’ Success in Buffalo

The sour end to Diggs’ first stint with the Bills shouldn’t totally overshadow his successes. Here’s a look at the 31-year-old Maryland native’s stat line from each of his four seasons in Buffalo:

  • 2020: 127 catches for 1,535 yards and 8 touchdowns
  • 2021: 103 catches for 1,225 yards and 10 touchdowns
  • 2022: 108 catches for 1,429 yards and 11 touchdowns
  • 2023: 107 catches for 1,183 yards and 8 touchdowns

Those are elite numbers from start to finish. Even his final season, which saw some obvious physical decline, was highly productive. He’s never been a receiver who was overly dependent on speed to create separation, which helped him age a little more gracefully.

It’s also important to remember Diggs didn’t show up to Buffalo when quarterback Josh Allen was already an MVP-level talent. In 2020, the signal-caller was still working to establish himself as the face of the franchise. He’d endured a pair of up-and-down seasons to open his NFL career.

Diggs’ arrival came at a time when Allen needed a true No. 1 receiver. It was a match made in heaven, especially for the first few years. The quarterback had his go-to target and the wideout had seemingly left his antics with the Minnesota Vikings.

In fact, for a while it seemed like the 2020 First Team All-Pro selection would end his career in Buffalo.

Allen-Diggs Relationship Fades

Things began to change at the end of the 2022 season, though. The Bills’ offense came out flat in a 27-10 home playoff loss to the Cincinnati Bengals. Cameras caught Diggs having an animated one-way conversation with his quarterback:

Although it wasn’t set in stone at that moment, it became clear over time that snapshot was the beginning of the end for Diggs in Buffalo. He returned in 2023 but the upbeat vibes were gone. His interactions with Allen lacked the enthusiasm and mutual admiration of previous seasons.

The Bills slowly started to evolve the offense in new directions. That became another blatant clue they were preparing to move on. The outspoken receiver finished with just three catches for 21 yards in his final game with the team, a 27-24 playoff loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.

Sure enough, Beane traded Diggs and a pair of late-round draft picks to the Houston Texans last April in exchange for a second-round selection in the 2025 draft.

Bills Don’t Need What Diggs Provides

While the current nature of the Allen-Diggs friendship is uncertain, an on-field reunion doesn’t make a lot of sense for anybody involved.

The Bills have already built a well-rounded receiver corps. They have four wideouts (Khalil Shakir, Keon Coleman, Joshua Palmer and Curtis Samuel) along with two tight ends (Dalton Kincaid and Dawson Knox) who will be fighting for targets in 2025. The “everybody eats” mentality is here to stay.

Buffalo has a niche need at the position: a speedy vertical threat. Someone who can stretch the field and keep opposing secondaries honest. The snap count for that role will be modest.

Meanwhile, Diggs suffered a torn ACL in late October. That’s a major concern for a player who was already dealing with physical decline as he passed the age-30 barrier. It’s also why a playmaker with his track record remains on the free-agent market.

The University of Maryland product will likely have to sign an incentive-laden, one-year contract to prove he can still be an impact player. In turn, he’ll assuredly prefer a team where he’ll see a healthy target share. Production matters if he’s hitting free agency again next offseason.

That’s just the on-field fit, too. It’s also fair to question whether bringing him back in the locker room could create unnecessary distractions given his departure from Buffalo a year ago. That’s the last thing the Bills need at this stage of their championship chase.

So, while the speculation created some intrigue about a potential comeback, it’s quite clear that path is not one either side should be interested in traveling.

Main Image: Troy Taormina – USA Today Sports

The post Bills Rumors: Buffalo Must Avoid Stefon Diggs Free-Agent Reunion appeared first on Last Word on Pro Football.