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Stephen Holder, ESPN
ORLANDO, Fla. — Wide receiver Stefon Diggs, in his first comments since the Bills were ousted from the playoffs, expressed a bit of uncertainty about his future in Buffalo while acknowledging regrets about the team’s season-ending loss.
Diggs, who is participating in this weekend’s Pro Bowl Games, was asked whether he was optimistic about the future in Buffalo and delivered an answer that could be construed as noncommittal.
“I feel like I take it day by day,” he said. “Obviously, there’s a lot of changes going on, a lot of things going on. I can’t really put the carriage before the horse, you know what I’m saying? But I got a great offseason in front of me to put a lot of work in and kind of build around what we got and what we’re doing.
“I can’t tell you what the future holds, but I’m still being me.”
When asked whether he was ready to move forward with the Bills, Diggs replied, “I’m ready to go no matter which way it goes.” He did not elaborate.
Diggs had not spoken with reporters since before his team’s AFC wild-card round win over the Pittsburgh Steelers, and he regularly declines to take part in media appearances after games. In the absence of his comments, speculation has emerged about Diggs’ future in Buffalo.
Earlier in the season, Diggs was adamant when asked about his future, saying, “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. … I’ve spoken true words. I’ve said the same thing over and over and over.”
Diggs had three catches for 21 yards in the team’s divisional round loss to Kansas City, his least productive performance of the season. He was targeted eight times, leaving him with a catch percentage of 37.5 — his second lowest of the season.
In a play that will long be remembered in western New York, Diggs dropped a deep pass from quarterback Josh Allen that could have resulted in a key fourth-quarter touchdown in the loss, with Allen delivering the ball more than 60 yards downfield.
But Bills general manager Brandon Beane, in a recent news conference, backed his team’s top receiver, who will have a salary cap hit of $27.354 million next season and three years remaining on the four-year extension he signed with Buffalo in 2022.
“We have to continue to put weapons out there to keep teams from bracketing him or locking him down in different ways to take him away,” Beane said. “…Stef can still play. I’m sure he would love to have that deep ball again. He’d be the first to tell you. He’s super competitive. He’s going to work his tail off this offseason. I know there’s various reasons or questions on this or his production … but I still see Stef as a No. 1 receiver.”
Asked about the Chiefs playoff game, Diggs on Friday said, “I’ve been in the league for a long time. Obviously, even as players, some plays we want back and some plays I want back, especially at the end of the game. But it’s not much you can do about it. Now, here as you take a couple of weeks to decompress and think about it, things could have been better. But [I’m] kind of rolling with the punches and moving forward.”
Bills reporter Alaina Getzenberg contributed to this report.
