- Veteran receiver Stefon Diggs is preparing for his first Super Bowl appearance with the New England Patriots.
- Diggs has found new life in New England after contentious exits from Minnesota and Buffalo, and a short stint in Houston.
- The receiver faces strangulation and assault charges from an alleged December incident, which he has denied.
- Diggs has become the top target for second-year quarterback Drake Maye, helping rejuvenate the Patriots’ offense.
SAN JOSE, CA — Two trades, four different teams, playoff flameouts, emotional exits and a torn ACL last season. Stefon Diggs has endured the ebbs and flows of an NFL veteran.
Yet, he’s been rejuvenated in New England.
‘The amount of work that I put in brought me confidence. I’m not scared of nothing. I’m ready for everything that you know God throws at me. I just feel like I got big shoulders and I worked hard for it. So, what I learned about myself is I’m resilient,’ Diggs said Feb. 2, in the Patriots’ first Super Bowl 60 media appearance. ‘Having a passion for it is different when you fall short a million times. How many times can you get back up? And I got back up every time. I brush myself off. I made sure I was okay. I never gave up. I never gave up on myself, either. Even when those gave up around me.’
Since signing a three-year deal with the Patriots in March, Diggs has become New England’s leading receiver. Simultaneously, the Patriots have taken the 11-year veteran further than he’s ever gone before as he prepares for his first career Super Bowl.
The mercurial receiver’s time in New England hasn’t come without controversy. He faces strangulation and assault charges from an alleged incident involving his personal chef in December. He categorically denied the allegations, the Patriots said in a statement. Diggs’ arraignment on the charges was originally scheduled for Jan. 23 in Dedham District Court, but the court date was later postponed to Feb. 13.
The charges came as an extension of the baggage the 11th-year NFL veteran brought to Foxborough. Diggs’ lone injury-shortened season with the Houston Texans followed a falling out of sorts between Diggs and the Buffalo Bills, who traded him to Houston in 2024 for a second-round pick in last year’s draft. It was only after a falling out in Minnesota that the Vikings traded Diggs to the Bills in 2020.
After securing a career-first Super Bowl berth with the Patriots’ 10-7 AFC Championship victory over the Denver Broncos, a teary-eyed Diggs said he was grateful that the Patriots ‘took a chance on me’ in signing him as he returned from injury.
Stefon Diggs-Drake May pairing helped rejuvenate Patriots offense
Diggs was part of a massive overhaul for the Patriots this past offseason. The Patriots spent more than $200 million in guaranteed money on free agents in 2025, the most by any team in the NFL last offseason. The new faces in New England and first-year coach Mike Vrabel have helped the Patriots become the fifth team to appear in the Super Bowl the year after winning fewer than five games.
This year’s edition of the Patriots features a unique blend of veterans and young players.
On offense, though, it’s Diggs who’s become Drake Maye’s No. 1 wide receiver in what’s been an MVP-caliber campaign for the second-year quarterback. It’s a small sample size, but Diggs is the best wideout Maye’s had in New England. Diggs is Maye’s first 1,000-yard receiver and only player to register over 70 receptions.
Maye and Diggs produced the highest completion percentage (83.3%) among quarterback and wide receiver duos in 2025, according to Next Gen Stats.
‘I think it’s been an incredibly positive growing experience for Drake to be around a player as accomplished as Stef. And Stef has done many, many, many things in this league. He came in with a lot of pelts on the wall. Drake has learned how to assimilate with him, work together with a player that has been around a long time and been around a lot of good quarterbacks,’ Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels said. ‘I think it’s been really great for Drake’s growth and development in general.’
Maye said Diggs has even helped build up his confidence.
‘He’s big on trust and trust in him. He’s always instilling trust into me and confidence in myself. He’s always pumping me up. His trust and confidence in himself never wavers,’ Maye said. ‘To see somebody at his level who has done it at a high level in this league a long time. To see that and knowing that his confidence never waivers, why should mine?’
Diggs had a frustrating end in Minnesota, followed by an unceremonious exit in Buffalo and a cup of coffee in Houston.
Is Diggs’ fourth team the charm? Super Bowl 60 could provide a more definitive answer.
“It’s been a long time I’ve been playing. I’ve been in the NFL for 11 years,” Diggs said. “I’m here on a business trip. It’s a good experience but I’m here on a mission.”
Follow USA TODAY Sports’ Tyler Dragon on X @TheTylerDragon.