The Bills and receiver Stefon Diggs seem to be at a crossroads. And there seems to be no good option for proceeding.
Diggs, one of our favorite players in the NFL, has fallen from the ranks of the top receivers in the NFL. His contract, however, keeps him among the highest paid players at his position. So what will the Bills do about it for 2024?
Yes, Diggs finished seventh in the league in catches, with 107. He finished 13th in yards, with 1,183. Still, his best work — by far — came early in the season. He had 100 or more receiving yards in five of the Bills’ first six games; he was on pace for 1,756 yards for the season.
After Week 6, Diggs didn’t have a single 100-yard game. He had four games under 30 yards, six games under 50 yards. In two playoff games, he had 52 and 21.
Diggs has claimed he was being double-teamed. Chiefs safety Justin Reid has said that, against Kansas City during the regular season, that wasn’t the case.
They didn’t double him on Sunday. As Chris Simms pointed out on Wednesday’s PFT Live, receiver Khalil Shakir was double-teamed on the play that was nearly a touchdown to Shakir late in the game. On that same play, Diggs was wide open, running a crossing route underneath with only a couple of linebackers in the general area.
On Tuesday, G.M. Brandon Beane said Diggs is still a No. 1 receiver. Is he, though? Start listing the best receivers in the NFL, and ask yourself whether you’d rather have them or Diggs, who turned 30 in November.
Diggs’s contract pays him like a No. 1 receiver. His cap number for 2024 is $27.854 million. Cutting or trading him before June 1 would result in a dead-cap charge of $31.096 million.
A quick decision needs to be made. Diggs’s 2024 base salary of $18.5 million becomes fully guaranteed on March 17.
Whether the Bills choose to continue the relationship is a different question from whether Diggs wants to stay. If he’d be released before March 17 (presumably with a post-June 1 designation), would someone pay him $18.5 million for 2024?
Probably, but not definitely. There are plenty of great receivers due to be free agents in March, and the receiver position in the draft is becoming like the running back position has been, for years. Although the Ravens paid Odell Beckham Jr. a base salary of $15 million in 2023 (and likely regret it), the final 11 games of 2023 make it hard to justify a major investment in Diggs for 2024.
A fresh start could be what he needs. First, the Bills need to decide whether he’ll get one. Then, Diggs will have to decide whether he wants one.
It’s something to watch over the next few weeks. They’ll either renew their vows or they won’t. If they don’t, Diggs will be on the move for 2024, four years after he tweeted his way out of Minnesota.