Stefon Diggs is feeling good. The Patriots don’t want him to get too carried away, it seems.
The new Patriots wideout has been coming along well this offseason, however he did not play in the preseason opener against the Washington Commanders. Head coach Mike Vrabel declared it a coach’s decision, but it was noteworthy since other starters, including Drake Maye, played.
But in an appearance Thursday on WEEI’s The Greg Hill Show, Patriots safety-turned-NFL analyst Devin McCourty shared some insight he gained from Diggs in a conversation they had last week.
“We talked to him after practice and he was kinda still energetic after the joint practice with Washington,” McCourty said. “He was like, ‘I told them I could do everything. I’m 100 percent,’ he said.
“But they told him, ‘Hey, we need you in the games. We need you during those big moments and we want you to be healthy. You’ve done this for a while now. You’ve been in preseason games. You’ve been in practices. We just want to be smart.
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Diggs had 47 receptions for 496 yards with three touchdowns over eight games with the Houston Texans last season before sustaining the season-ending injury.
Prior to Houston, Diggs was a Pro Bowl nominee for four straight years with the Buffalo Bills, getting a First-Team All-Pro nod in 2020 and a Second Team selection in 2022.
“I think that makes a lot of sense,” McCourty said of the plan to slow-play things. “As a guy who got to play 13 years, I think there is an advantage to trying to map out a plan for you to be your best in those moments. He’s out there, he’s going to be playing, but coming off an ACL — and even though he looks amazing. I give them credit for saying, ‘Hey, let’s not take this too far. Let’s not get this new receiver, who we really like, and just throw him out there just so we can watch him in preseason. Let’s be smart and take it one day at a time.’”
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“I think it will pay off for them,” he added. “He’s playing football. They’re just not throwing him out there like he’s 25. They’re actually thinking about the maul that he’s put on his body, and how to get the best out of Diggs later in the season.”
The Patriots regular season opener is September 7th, so the fact that Diggs feels 100 percent with a few weeks still to go is hugely positive.
The bigger challenge, it seems, is keeping Diggs from overdoing it between now and then.
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