Poll: How do we feel about Stefon Diggs the player?

[GoBills808]

2 hours ago, Alphadawg7 said:

Diggs had one real issue…his obsession with winning.  I think his desire to win and how he wears it on his sleeve gets misunderstood greatly with Diggs.  He is not the Diva “me first” WR who cares more about his stats than winning that some fans and media try and make him out to be.  
 

The real issue with Diggs is quite simple.  He knows he is on the back part of his career and his window for a Super Bowl is closing fast as a player.  And he has lost faith that Buffalo can get over the hump before he is done.  
 

I have no doubt he genuinely loved his time in Buffalo in terms of the fans, experience, his teammates, etc.  But I also have no doubt he sees the team in a mini rebuild mode and he had no desire to risk his last couple years of being at the top of his game on a team looking at the potential of taking a step back with this much roster turnover this season when it was already not a team getting over the hump to begin with.  
 

I won’t say he is in “Decline”, I mean even with lower stats back half of last year, plenty of time he was wide open and beating his man and Josh missed the throw or had just gone elsewhere.  His stats didn’t go down because he wasn’t getting open, they went down because we ran more and spread the ball around more.  But Father Time is undefeated, so there may be a slight decline or one coming soon, but I think Diggs is still a good WR1 right now with still some of the best feet and routes in the game.  
 

So I think he is a legend of the game player in the future, I think it should be more a “mutual parting of the ways” scenario rather than a bitter split.  Not sure he makes it into the Bills Wall of Famer category only being here 4 years and not finishing his career here or winning a SB, but also wouldn’t rule it out either.  
 

No hard feelings from me, more of a I think it’s good for both sides scenario in my mind.  Diggs gets his move to an ascending team and Bills have no more Diggs questions all season and Allen can spread the ball around which is what he does when he is at his best.

 

I can’t wait though for Allen to remind Diggs that Allen “Is him.” when we beat them when we face them this season.

for a guy supposedly obsessed w winning he has a funny habit of leaving good teams for worse ones

[Nephilim17]

Elite regular season player. Perhaps he's on a slow decline, perhaps he still has one more elite regular season (or first season half ) in him.

 

However with 65 yards total in last 3 playoff games, I don't think he's a money post-season player. 

That's what the Bills need: a player in the playoffs who will be bracketed and who will still get 80, 100, 120 yards in a game, and make clutch grabs in the 4th quarter, the last 2 minutes, and OT if we go there. 

[stevestojan]

That drop is as big as the defensive pants crapping from 13 seconds. The ball was PERFECT.
 

Constant (not so)cryptic tweets with some homers defending it as nothing (spoiler: it was something).
 

Refusing to fight for YAC (while folks said it must be an injury - well, let’s see how his physical goes in Houston). He reminded me of a fast Pete Metzelars with how quickly he’d drop to the ground after catching the ball. 

 

And all the drama for a guy who turned WR4 come playoff time. 
 

I loved some 2020/2021 Stef Diggs. 2023 version? Not so much. 
 

CJ Stroud, all of 22 years old, is in for it now. Has three WRs to feed. I’m sure they’ll all be happy to share the workload evenly….

 

Good riddance. 

[Alphadawg7]

1 hour ago, GoBills808 said:

for a guy supposedly obsessed w winning he has a funny habit of leaving good teams for worse ones

 

You might be the only person in America right now that says Texans are worse than the current state of the Bills.  

[GoBills808]

9 minutes ago, Alphadawg7 said:

 

You might be the only person in America right now that says Texans are worse than the current state of the Bills.  

Yeah just me and every sports book

[SoTier]

I never accuse players, especially Bills players, of being lazy, not trying, etc.  IMO, these guys wouldn't even sniff the NFL if drive and desire weren't part of their DNA.  Sometimes, players simply just don't have the physical talent, instincts or mental processing ability to be NFL stars.  Players are people not robots, and sometimes the drive and ambition that got them to the NFL can also make them PITAs.  Sometimes personal life outside football intrudes and short-circuits players' relationships with the team on the field and in the locker room.  Sometimes personal conflicts with coaches or teammates also spill out. 

 

I am not going to speculate about why Stefon Diggs is no longer a Buffalo Bill.  He was great for the Bills for nearly all of his time in Buffalo, but I think somewhere/somehow last season something changed.  It was time for him to go.  I hope he finds success in Houston or where ever he goes in the future unless he plays the Bills.

 

Thanks for the memories, Stef.

 

Edited April 8 by SoTier

[Fan in San Diego]

Not sure why his production fell off after Brady took over. But there is something to that. Obviously the Bills felt it had to be done this year instead of next year. We probably will never find out why.

 

 

[Alphadawg7]

25 minutes ago, GoBills808 said:

Yeah just me and every sports book

 

Everyone sees the Texans as an ascending team and Bills in a state of mini reload.  

 

Most importantly Diggs sees it that way.  

[Fr. Jerk]

I voted good riddance just cause that was the funniest option, ya dig? 

[DrDawkinstein]

1 hour ago, GoBills808 said:

for a guy supposedly obsessed w winning he has a funny habit of leaving good teams for worse ones

 

Say what?

 

I dont think anyone would argue that the 2019/2020 Vikings were better than the 2020 and beyond Bills.

And Texans are about as hot as you can get right now and very reminiscent of that same young Bills team of 4 years ago.

 

He didnt skip town just to join the Panthers and Cardinals.

[GoBills808]

2 hours ago, DrDawkinstein said:

 

Say what?

 

I dont think anyone would argue that the 2019/2020 Vikings were better than the 2020 and beyond Bills.

And Texans are about as hot as you can get right now and very reminiscent of that same young Bills team of 4 years ago.

 

He didnt skip town just to join the Panthers and Cardinals.

So my thoughts on Diggs writ large-

 

I'm very willing to be accused of kicking the guy on his way out because I believed this was inevitable and frankly should have happened last year after it was obvious he wanted out. personally, it's not fun rooting for your second best player when he doesn't  want to be on the team anymore. I don't think that's so outrageous altho the amount of apparent new Texans/CJ Stroud fans here would suggest otherwise😂😂

 

Of course I don't love the state of the WR room rn but I didn't love it last year, so to be too upset over losing a guy who couldn't make a play on the same ball vs the same DB Allen threw for a pick in London that Nico Collins mossed the guy...whether is was desire or ability doesn't really matter anymore imo. He wasn't making the plays we needed and his yearly postseason disappearing act capped by that drop will be my lasting memory of his time here. If I could I'd change my vote to good luck in Dallas 2 seasons from now

[T master]

The only WR in Bills HISTORY to have 4 consecutive 1000 yard seasons - better than Andre, better than Moulds, Butler, all of them . He helped make this team legit every year . 

 

But as there is with McD & Beane there will be haters ...

[colin]

he was great for 2 years, and then great to start, meh to finish, and a zero in the playoffs for two years.  not worth 23 a year, so he had to go.

 

his attitude and all of that would be acceptable if he continued to be a top wr, but he just isn't anymore.

 

history will show us that josh made diggs wayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy more than the other way around.

[BullBuchanan]

Best Bills receiver ever, and I don't think it's particularly close. Highest YPG by about 35%. 4th in yards and TDs despite only playing 66 games as a Bill. with one more season he would've left Lee Evans in the dust despite Evans playing 7 seasons. Highest catch percentage in the top 20 outside of Freddie. Beyond crushing the stat sheet, he was uncoverable for most of his time here, and routinely made the toughest catches look routine. We haven't had a player like that in at least the last 40 years and probably ever.

Edited April 8 by BullBuchanan

[Mikie2times]

 

Insanely poor performer in the playoffs for being insanely competitive. 

[wppete]

It was the right timing to move on from Diggs but only if he is replaced with a strong young WR or two. 

[<bills4life>]

Those 10 people who voted for “bills best receiver ever” must have been born after the 90’s.

[DCofNC]

I’m really between option 1 and 2, I think he’s a punk ass in decline.

[4BillsintheBurgh]

3 hours ago, GoBills808 said:

So my thoughts on Diggs writ large-

 

I'm very willing to be accused of kicking the guy on his way out because I believed this was inevitable and frankly should have happened last year after it was obvious he wanted out. personally, it's not fun rooting for your second best player when he doesn't  want to be on the team anymore. I don't think that's so outrageous altho the amount of apparent new Texans/CJ Stroud fans here would suggest otherwise😂😂

 

Of course I don't love the state of the WR room rn but I didn't love it last year, so to be too upset over losing a guy who couldn't make a play on the same ball vs the same DB Allen threw for a pick in London that Nico Collins mossed the guy...whether is was desire or ability doesn't really matter anymore imo. He wasn't making the plays we needed and his yearly postseason disappearing act capped by that drop will be my lasting memory of his time here. If I could I'd change my vote to good luck in Dallas 2 seasons from now

I think Diggs' real goal is KC, hence the conversion to a one year contract. I think beyond that the Texans just worked for him this year.

[Mikie2times]

https://zonecoverage.com/2021/minnesota-vikings-news/stefon-diggs-admits-he-was-a-bad-teammate-at-the-end-of-his-minnesota-days/

 

"I hate talking about old stuff … but up to me wanting to go to another place, I was a good teammate. It wasn’t until I wanted to do something else is when I became a bad teammate. So as far as when things are going good, it’s all good until it’s not good." 

 

Was Diggs not the best teammate at the end again? How could that come as a surprise to anybody. 

 

He is a microcosm of why we can't get past the divisional round.  When the going gets tough Diggs gets going. 

Edited April 8 by Mikie2times

[BullBuchanan]

1 hour ago, <bills4life> said:

Those 10 people who voted for “bills best receiver ever” must have been born after the 90’s.

He was far better than any Bills receiver from the 90s onward. he accomplished things Reed and Moulds never did.

Edited April 9 by BullBuchanan

[<bills4life>]

19 minutes ago, BullBuchanan said:

He was far better than any Bills receiver from the 90s onward. he accomplished things Reed and Moulds never did.

The guy played four seasons here and people want to anoint him the bills best receiver ever?  That’s crazy talk.  Over someone who is in the hall of fame? Ridiculous. Don’t get me wrong he is a great player. But to say he was better than Andre Reed is ludicrous.  

Edited April 9 by <bills4life>
Misread reply

[BullBuchanan]

15 minutes ago, &lt;bills4life&gt; said:

The guy played four seasons here and people want to anoint him the bills best receiver ever?  That’s crazy talk.  Over someone who is in the hall of fame? Ridiculous. Don’t get me wrong he is a great player. But to say he was better than Andre Reed is ludicrous.  

The most lukewarm take ever - Andre Reed being in the Hall of Fame is more ridiculous.

[<bills4life>]

1 minute ago, BullBuchanan said:

The most lukewarm take ever - Andre Reed being in the Hall of Fame is more ridiculous.

Talk about a lukewarm take. 😂 

[Mark Vader]

I think that Diggs is without question one of the best receivers we've ever had.

 

He had an ego and wanted to win! He was always trying to motivate players to do their best. Remember when Damar Hamlin went down, and they were contemplating continuing the game? Diggs was trying to get the team back up for playing again.

 

I never once saw him quit on the team. Unlike Stephon Gilmore.

 

I understand that he is on the decline, it happens. Although I still think we could've gotten one more year out of him, but they chose to move on.

 

It's funny how so many people on this board was always yelling about how the Bills "Need to bring in a player with attitude, because we're not going to win with choir boys." Then the Bills get a player with attitude and everyone on the board want him drawn and quartered.

 

TBD has a lot of funny people on here. Not funny "ha-ha."

Edited April 9 by Mark Vader

[BarleyNY]

Diggs can still play. Home games in a dome and playing in the AFCS will be helpful for him. The relationship was over here and him being on the team was going to be a real problem moving forward. Moving on while we could still get something for him wasn’t the worst thing. 

Edited April 9 by BarleyNY

[Dr. Who]

I think he'll rebound and have a decent year, but he is declining. Solid WR2 is probably his ceiling, but who knows? He no longer plays for my team, so thankfully, I no longer have to give a damn about his antics.

Edited April 9 by Dr. Who

[LarryMadman]

Talented yes, however his stupid antics very quickly trumped his declining  production. The headache just isn't worth it anymore.

57 minutes ago, BarleyNY said:

Diggs can still play. Home games in a dome and playing in the AFCS will be helpful for him. The relationship over and him being on the team was going to be a real problem moving forward. Moving on while we could still get something for him wasn’t the worst thing. 

I think the league will catch up to Stroud a bit this year and Stroud isn't nearly as good as Josh Allen. That said I think Diggs numbers will decline more due to age and Stroud not being his #1 option and he will go off. He is and has been a ticking time bomb in two places now, why would that change, IMO it will happen sooner this time.

[BarleyNY]

11 hours ago, LarryMadman said:

 

I think the league will catch up to Stroud a bit this year and Stroud isn't nearly as good as Josh Allen. That said I think Diggs numbers will decline more due to age and Stroud not being his #1 option and he will go off. He is and has been a ticking time bomb in two places now, why would that change, IMO it will happen sooner this time.

 

Sophomore slumps definitely happen to a lot of QBs. But I think Stroud is the real deal and there will be substantially more talent surrounding him this season than last. He certainly has the talent to be up there with Mahomes, Burrow, and Allen. 

 

As for Diggs, he is who he is. The same guy that came to Buffalo left Buffalo. Unless Houston’s season falls apart, he will keep himself in check this season. After all he’s only on a one year deal. 

Edited April 9 by BarleyNY

[SoTier]

12 hours ago, BullBuchanan said:

He was far better than any Bills receiver from the 90s onward. he accomplished things Reed and Moulds never did.

 

I disagree.  Reed and Moulds played in an entirely different era so you cannot really compare stats. DBs had much more latitude to defend passes back then.  I would guess that at least half of the PI penalties today would be considered good defensive plays 30 years ago.  Both also played before "WR" and "diva" became virtually synonymous.

 

Reed's career spanned the Bills' Glory Years.  He had 4 1000+ yard seasons plus 3 more 900+ and 2 800+ yard seasons when 1000 yard seasons were much rarer than they are today.  He also shared WR duties with James Lofton in the prime of his career and with Eric Moulds at the end of it.  He also was instrumental in helping the Bills get to four consecutive Super Bowls.

 

Moulds played on the declining teams of the late 1990s and the early Drought teams of the early 2000s.  He played with Kelly only for a single season as a rookie.  Then he suffered through seasons with Todd Collins, Doug Flutie, Rob Johnson, Alex Van Pelt, Drew Bledsoe, and Kelly Holcomb.  He had four 1,000 yard seasons: in 1998 (1368, Flutie), 2000 (1326, Johnson), 2002 (1292, Bledsoe), and 2004 (1043, Bledsoe).

 

[Captain Hindsight]

Short term it will hurt. Diggs is a really

talented player and a good WR in the NFL. We’ve all seen talented dudes that don’t live up to the hype and Diggs certainly lived up to the hype. 
 

That said, he going to be released next season. For them to get a 2nd for a guy who was on the way out anyway is an incredible deal. I don’t have any I’ll will towards the dude, but moving on was 100% the right call 

[TheFunPolice]

Elite WR but injuries and age are catching up. 

 

If he was truly unhappy here then it's a win-win. I like Tomlin's saying: we want volunteers, not prisoners. 

[<bills4life>]

14 hours ago, BullBuchanan said:

He was far better than any Bills receiver from the 90s onward. he accomplished things Reed and Moulds never did.

imagine Diggs going over the middle? Yeah me neither.  Diggs in many cases catches ball and falls down to avoid getting hit.  This is fine I get it.  This is how he plays.  But Andre was fearless in an era where they were still allowed to take your head off.  Don’t get it twisted.  He was a true alpha receiver.  It was Jerry rice and him. 1a. 1b.  Diggs isn’t even in the top 10 today. And has certainly never been 1 a or b at any time. 

[DrDawkinstein]

2 minutes ago, &lt;bills4life&gt; said:

imagine Diggs going over the middle? Yeah me neither.  Diggs in many cases catches ball and falls down to avoid getting hit.  This is fine I get it.  This is how he plays.  But Andre was fearless in an era where they were still allowed to take your head off.  Don’t get it twisted.  He was a true alpha receiver.  It was Jerry rice and him. 1a. 1b.  Diggs isn’t even in the top 10 today. And has certainly never been 1 a or b at any time. 

 

If you dont think Diggs has ever gone over the middle of the field then you havent been watching Bills football the past 4 years.

[<bills4life>]

1 minute ago, DrDawkinstein said:

 

If you dont think Diggs has ever gone over the middle of the field then you havent been watching Bills football the past 4 years.

Any where near Andre reed? Who did it for a living?  If your not able to understand that then you have not been watching football period for a very long time. 

[DrDawkinstein]

11 minutes ago, &lt;bills4life&gt; said:

Any where near Andre reed? Who did it for a living?  If your not able to understand that then you have not been watching football period for a very long time. 

 

That's not what you said tho. "Imagine Diggs going over the middle" means he doesnt/wouldnt do it.

 

Definitely not as much or as well as Reed. But Diggs was a warrior out there. Regardless of how poorly Bills fans want to speak of him now that he is gone.

[<bills4life>]

1 minute ago, DrDawkinstein said:

 

That's not what you said tho. "Imagine Diggs going over the middle" means he doesnt/wouldnt do it.

 

Definitely not as much or as well as Reed. But Diggs was a warrior out there. Regardless of how poorly Bills fans want to speak of him now that he is gone.

Fair enough.  I should have reworded to “rarely goes over the middle and makes business decisions after catch as to avoid injury”.  I am also not speaking poorly of him. Awesome wr and loved his passion. But some people need a reality check when we start throwing out terms such as best bills receiver ever.  It’s like saying Mario Williams was better than Bruce smith. 

[BullBuchanan]

7 minutes ago, &lt;bills4life&gt; said:

Fair enough.  I should have reworded to “rarely goes over the middle and makes business decisions after catch as to avoid injury”.  I am also not speaking poorly of him. Awesome wr and loved his passion. But some people need a reality check when we start throwing out terms such as best bills receiver ever.  It’s like saying Mario Williams was better than Bruce smith. 

You understand that he and the team knew that he had far more value being healthy and available than proving he was a touch guy by taking unnecessary hits right? He's remained remarkable healthy during his time here considering we've shoveled him 644 targets in 4 years while Andre reed had only 941 IN 15 YEARS as a Bill.

Nobody wants their #1 $20M dollar WR taking punishing hits. That's what Tight Ends and inexpensive slot receivers are for. There are a lot of terrible arguments that Andre Reed was better than modern day receivers, and this is probably the worst one. His ability and willingness to catch passes over the middle doesn't nearly make up for his lack of production. Reed's best quality as a player was longevity. 16 years for a receiver in his era was insane and it's the only reason he had the aggregate stats necessary to eventually get a nod to the HoF. If he's not part of the "4 straight super bowl appearances" story, there's no way he ever gets in, because there were better players during his era and after that still aren't.

[SoTier]

21 minutes ago, BullBuchanan said:

You understand that he and the team knew that he had far more value being healthy and available than proving he was a touch guy by taking unnecessary hits right? He's remained remarkable healthy during his time here considering we've shoveled him 644 targets in 4 years while Andre reed had only 941 IN 15 YEARS as a Bill.

Nobody wants their #1 $20M dollar WR taking punishing hits. That's what Tight Ends and inexpensive slot receivers are for. There are a lot of terrible arguments that Andre Reed was better than modern day receivers, and this is probably the worst one. His ability and willingness to catch passes over the middle doesn't nearly make up for his lack of production. Reed's best quality as a player was longevity. 16 years for a receiver in his era was insane and it's the only reason he had the aggregate stats necessary to eventually get a nod to the HoF. If he's not part of the "4 straight super bowl appearances" story, there's no way he ever gets in, because there were better players during his era and after that still aren't.

 

I don't think it was meant as a criticism of Diggs, so much as an example of another difference in the way the game was played 30 years ago and how it's played today.

[<bills4life>]

45 minutes ago, BullBuchanan said:

You understand that he and the team knew that he had far more value being healthy and available than proving he was a touch guy by taking unnecessary hits right? He's remained remarkable healthy during his time here considering we've shoveled him 644 targets in 4 years while Andre reed had only 941 IN 15 YEARS as a Bill.

Nobody wants their #1 $20M dollar WR taking punishing hits. That's what Tight Ends and inexpensive slot receivers are for. There are a lot of terrible arguments that Andre Reed was better than modern day receivers, and this is probably the worst one. His ability and willingness to catch passes over the middle doesn't nearly make up for his lack of production. Reed's best quality as a player was longevity. 16 years for a receiver in his era was insane and it's the only reason he had the aggregate stats necessary to eventually get a nod to the HoF. If he's not part of the "4 straight super bowl appearances" story, there's no way he ever gets in, because there were better players during his era and after that still aren't.

-Oh 100 percent.  I have zero issue with Diggs and his style of play. I understand it.

-That is where we disagree.  Back then a running attack was more predominant than passing for most teams. Exception being Houston. This is a passing league now.  With rules where u can’t touch wrs.  A game made for offense and scoring. Much less clutching, grabbing, head hunting etc.. Reeds numbers would absolutely be much better. 
-outside of rice not too many. Carter/irvin maybe

-and playoff football? Reed over Diggs all day.