Stefon Diggs didn't waste time making an impact with the Washington Commanders, racking up four catches for 55 yards and one touchdown in Sunday's opener against the Philadelphia Eagles.
Father Time isn't on the soon-to-be 33-year-old receiver's side, but the stat sheet has never lied about the two-time All-Pro's abilities. When healthy, Diggs has remained one of the most productive wide receivers in the NFL.
Just ask the New England Patriots.
He opted to join the four-win Patriots with no idea if they'd even be good in 2025. Looking back, it was a legitimate hold-my-beer moment that turned into 85 catches for 1,013 yards and four touchdowns while coming off an ACL injury.
But Diggs' contributions didn't stop with just the on-field production. He
brought much-needed leadership, belief and a genuine swagger to the team that it has lacked for years. The entire motto that carried the team to 14 wins and an improbable Super Bowl run—"we all we got, we all we need"—came from Diggs' pregame speeches.
And yet, the Patriots saw the $26.5 million cap hit on his contract in the offseason and said, "No, thank you."
After cutting Diggs, the team opted to sign the younger Romeo Doubs instead to a four-year, $68 million deal. It hasn't been so smooth sailing with Doubs getting on the same page as third-year quarterback Drake Maye, although the duo has had moments in training camp. Doubs also dropped a wide-open pass late in last Wednesday's opener that would have moved the sticks and potentially stopped the bleeding in the loss to the Seattle Seahawks.
And no, this isn't an attempt to pile on Doubs, who is a talented player who should be much better moving forward. It's more of a question of why the Patriots didn't reward Diggs for what he did for the team in 2025. If they did, the team could have had A.J. Brown, Diggs, and Kayshon Boutte.
There would have still been a role for Boutte in that receiving lineup, and maybe the team would rethink its decision to trade him to the Houston Texans.
With Brown going down with a high ankle sprain in the opener, the team would be down to what they had last year at receiver. There wouldn't be the same unknown void that they'll be stepping into with Doubs as the top receiving option on the depth chart heading into Week 2.
Hindsight is obviously 20/20, and the Patriots could not have foreseen Brown's ankle injury. Still, they wouldn't have had to if they had simply rewarded Diggs for his production in 2025. Imagine how much more comfortable Maye would have been with Diggs in their second year together.
Imagine how much more comfortable Diggs would have been with another year in Josh McDaniels' offense.
The move is understandable from a strictly business perspective. Diggs was an aging wide receiver on an expensive contract, and Doubs was the 26-year-old ascending talent ready to break out as a potential star. For the Patriots, they knew what they had in Diggs and Boutte, and yet they still chose to roll the dice with their eyes set on an even bigger prize.
Maybe Doubs will hang 10 catches and 100-plus receiving yards in Sunday's game against the Pittsburgh Steelers and make everyone forget. Or, maybe he continues to struggle and proves an often-used saying true once and for all.
"If it ain't broke, don't fix it."
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This article originally appeared on Patriots Wire: Digg mistake: Should the Patriots have kept WR Stefon Diggs?
