6 rings & football things: Draft preview & offseason thoughts with Patriots.com's Paul Perillo
The team that’s run the AFC East the past four seasons is undergoing a significant facelift this offseason. And a rising power in the AFC South may now have championship aspirations.
As first reported Wednesday morning by ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Buffalo Bills are trading star wide receiver Stef Diggs to the Houston Texans, a massive deal that shakes up two divisions in the AFC immediately, not to mention the forthcoming draft and more. The Texans receive Diggs plus Buffalo’s fifth in 2025 and a sixth round pick in the upcoming draft (Buffalo has three picks in the fifth and sixth), while Buffalo receives the Texans second round pick (42nd overall).
Diggs had just signed a four year $96 million extension with Buffalo recently, a deal that looks pretty bad in hindsight now (he has a base salary of $18.5 million in 2024 for the Texans). The Bills will carry a significant dead cap price of $31 million for Diggs in the 2024 season, a number that may show just how intent they were to move on from a great player that was so integral to their success in recent years but had potentially become problematic of late. We all well remember the sideline tirade of the AFC Divisional Round loss at home to the Cincinnati Bengals just over a year ago.
Diggs may not have felt appreciated or liked the way Buffalo had pivoted from him as the offense’s focal point recently, especially after he was so instrumental in the development of Josh Allen. As recent as Tuesday evening Diggs was spouting off about just that on social media.
The ramifications of this trade for the AFC East, the AFC South, the AFC overall and your New England Patriots are manifold to say the least.
Buffalo’s four year run atop the AFC East could well be in jeopardy, though there are still questions aplenty with the Miami Dolphins and New York Jets as well, and more than plenty of issues with the Pats at the moment as well. The Bills lost receiver Gabe Davis in free agency to Jacksonville and now move on from Diggs, leaving recently signed veteran Curtis Samuel and third year rising star Khalil Shakir as their top wideouts. They almost certainly will be looking to add receiver depth in the draft, which could well impact the Pats who are looking for a number one wideout and more in the draft as well. But make no mistake this is Josh Allen’s team now.
Side note - the Pats won’t have to worry about Diggs twice a year now. He had a lot of success while in Buffalo vs New England, averaging six catches, 78 yards and a TD per game vs the Pats.
Meanwhile the Texans, who already had an excellent offseason adding Joe Mixon at RB and pass rushing star Danielle Hunter on defense, now upgrade an offense that was already ascending under now second year standout QB CJ Stroud.
The Texans stunned the NFL by winning the AFC South last season, then dominated the 11-6 Cleveland Browns at home in the Wild Card round before losing on the road to the #1 seed Baltimore Ravens. They will enter the 2024 season as the heavy favorites to win the AFC South, and perhaps, be a contender to challenge Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs for the AFC Championship.
For what it’s worth the Texans will host the Bills next season. Just another can’t-miss game to mark down on your 2024 football fan calendar.
An AFC East that could be up for grabs! A rising power in the AFC South! A possible contender to the Chiefs in the AFC! Absolutely wild what one trade can do on a Wednesday morning in the wild offseason of the NFL.
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