Stefon Diggs has been traded for a second-round draft pick to the Houston Texans.
HOUSTON, TX– If Stefon Diggs is remembered by Bills fans as one of the best wide receivers in franchise history, it might be in vain. The 30-year-old superstar wide receiver’s time in Buffalo is all but over as the Bills have traded Diggs to Houston. Houston will receive Diggs along with a 2024 sixth-round pick and a 2025 fifth-rounder. Buffalo will get everything but a lion’s share in the trade, simply trying to get Diggs off their roster with a 2025 second-round selection.
Tension between Diggs and the Bills had been building for quite some time throughout the season, as the trade comes off a cryptic yet direct altercation on X where Diggs commented to a user that stated that Allen doesn’t need a star wide receiver with a simple, “You sure?” Hours later, news broke that Diggs will be heading to Houston.
Diggs started his star-studded career in Minnesota where he set NFL and franchise records. After his rookie contract was up, the Vikings extended him only to trade him two years later to Buffalo. With the Bills, Josh Allen and Diggs became one of the AFC’s top offensive duos, making it to the playoffs all four years together. In 2023, Diggs was on pace to set career highs throughout the first half of the season, yet during the trailing half, both production and involvement fell off a cliff. This second half of the season was most probably the catalyst for most of Buffalo’s and Diggs’ issues, with Diggs becoming more and more outspoken about a potential departure from the Bills.
During the 2023 Divisional Round game versus the Kansas City Chiefs, miscues between Allen, the Bills offense, and Stefon Diggs might’ve been the breaking point for a growingly anxious front office full of vexation. The final straw, a massive 55-yard drop by Diggs that could’ve won the game for the Bills, instead of having to endure another playoff loss. In the eyes of the Bills’ front office, the star factor of Diggs had worn off. To them, he was no longer a WR1, and the team had to rid themselves of his ever-growing price tag which the team could no longer justify, and of his drama.
Now, Stefon Diggs will join a budding team that is on the verge of a breakout season. Just last year, the Texans surprised everyone with a rookie quarterback in CJ Stroud by making the Divisional Round of the playoffs. Diggs will fit right in with an offense that has the likes of Tank Dell, Nico Collins, the aforementioned up-and-coming CJ Stroud, and tight end Dalton Schultz.
Before Dell’s injury, he was due for 1,205 yards (he only ended up with 709) and Nico Collins had eight touchdowns– all building one of the greater young offenses currently in the NFL. The Texans have wanted a definite WR1 this entire offseason with the team attempting to trade for Keenan Allen before he was dealt to the Bears.
Houston understands there’s a massive window of opportunity opening up for the team as CJ Stroud has proven that he is more than capable of leading a team deep into the playoffs. The Houston Texans have spent the majority of this offseason on the market, looking for potential additions. The team bolstered up significantly on defense, including the addition of Danielle Hunter.
The Buffalo Bills will now carry the largest dead-cap hit ever for a wide receiver in NFL history. The team will take on $31.096 million in dead-cap space according to Over the Cap.
Stefon Diggs earlier this season reiterated his commitment to the Bills, “I’ve never really said anything about being unhappy or any instance of that. So, when you’re drawing conclusions as to stuff I’ve never said, that’s what kind of troubles me because it kind of throws a wrench in it. It kind of creates chaos where I haven’t created.
“Chaos created around me, whereas I just been in the same space, I’ve been in the same place, and I’ve spoken true words. I’ve said the same thing over and over and over. So, when you draw a conclusion as to how I feel in my foreseeable future here, I’ve never said anything, but I was a Buffalo Bill. I gave it everything I got. I’m a professional and I treat this game as such.”
It’s clear that that sentiment has since eroded over time.
