Not for long.
That’s what the acronym NFL really stands for amongst the members of the National Football League.
Whether it be due to injury, lack of success or age, the amount of time a person spends in the league – player, coach, or front office member – is limited, especially for the majority.
The time spent with just one organization is generally even shorter.
It’s a business when all is said and done, and those within the coveted brotherhood are well aware of it.
That’s just the nature of the beast.
However, despite this brutal truth, it’s inevitable to become attached or accustomed to something – it’s the human condition.
This is particularly true for fans, and those in the Bills Mafia are no stranger to seeing great players jettisoned out of town.
Even legends like Hall-of-Famers Thurman Thomas, Andre Reed, and Bruce Smith were all eventually bid adieu by the Buffalo Bills before they were ready to hang up their cleats.
So, while fans should certainly be familiar with a revolving door of players, there’s undoubtedly going to be a mixed bag of emotions when they see a former favorite in a new uniform on the opposing sideline at Highmark Stadium.
The feelings might be even stronger when it comes to a certain superstar who may or may not have helped orchestrate his way out of Orchard Park, N.Y..
The true answer will most likely never be disclosed, but the discourse surrounding wide receiver Stefon Diggs’ departure from Buffalo is interesting to say the least.
For Diggs, it appears as though the former Minnesota Viking, Buffalo Bill, and Houston Texan, who now calls New England home, is locked in and ready to go coming off a season-high six receptions for 101 yards in the New England Patriots’ most recent 42-13 victory over the Carolina Panthers last Sunday afternoon.
His current season totals of 19 receptions for 213 yards in New England would currently be tops for the Bills in both categories through four weeks as their leading receiver right now, Keon Coleman, has just 17 receptions for 203 yards. Diggs doesn’t have a touchdown to his credit yet this season, however, and he’ll undoubtedly be looking to change that this weekend.
“Me being there before, you know obviously people are going to make that a huge thing, and it is a huge thing for me. I’ve got a lot of respect, and I’ve got a lot of love for that city and that fanbase, and even the players over there. So, kind of on social media we still take jabs at each other and support each other, but it’s just going to be so nice to see those guys,” Diggs said during his locker room availability this week in Foxborough, Mass..
“It’s going to be a little bit emotional. I try to keep the main thing the main thing, but it’s my first time back there, you know? It’s going to be a hell of an atmosphere. I was a part of that for a long time … So, I’m excited.”
How do his former teammates feel, though?
Well, if there is any ill will toward the 31-year-old receiver who posted 445 receptions, 5,372 receiving yards, and 37 touchdowns in four seasons with Buffalo, they’re certainly not letting it be known through the media.
Instead, they’re focused on the task at hand and expect nothing but the best of what Diggs has to bring on the field.
“Just knowing who he is (and) knowing the competitor that he is – he’s going to be amped up (and) excited,” Bills’ defensive tackle Ed Oliver said following Wednesday’s practice.
“He’s probably going to want the ball. He’s going to want to do ‘Stef things,’ you know? The special catches, the YAC after the play – like, we’ll expect that out of him just as (it was) when he was here. How special of a player he was, I’m pretty sure you’re going to get that Stef coming Sunday night.”
The drama surrounding the Minnesota Vikings’ 2015 fifth-round pick and his former teams is nothing new.
There were plenty of rumblings following Diggs’ departure from Minnesota in 2020, and then again when he left Buffalo last year in a trade that sent the dynamic wideout and two future draft picks to Houston in exchange for a 2025 second-round pick.
The Bills went on to play their former receiver in week 5 of last season, losing a nail-biter, 23-20, to the Texans on the road.
Diggs, who would go on to suffer a season-ending ACL injury just three weeks later, finished the outing versus Buffalo with six receptions for 82 yards on eight targets.
It was the second-highest output of the shortened season for the four-time Pro-Bowler behind only his week 3 performance (10 catches, 94 yards) in 2024, which fittingly came against the Vikings.
Now, just shy of 12 months since his injury, Diggs is back for more against his former employer, this time as a member of the Patriots – a storied rival of the Bills.
It will mark the first time he has been back in Orchard Park since his highly-publicized departure, and the interactions between the Maryland native and former teammates will likely be vastly different than his dealings with fans.
The balance between what happens on and off the field is something current Bills’ cornerback Tre’Davious White has familiarity with, as he too returned to Buffalo in a different jersey last January with the Baltimore Ravens before rejoining the team as a free agent signing this past offseason.
“I mean it’s definitely hard when you have great relationships with guys that (are on) the team (you’re up against). So, it’s definitely hard. It’s just something that you’ve got to face,” White said on Wednesday.
“When the whistle blows you just try to do what’s best for the team that you’re on and try to give the best that you can give. And once the whistle blows and the game’s over it’s (back to being) family after that.”
What the outcome will be remains to be seen, but there’s little doubt that both squads will be ready to go when the lights come on for Sunday Night Football this weekend.
It will be up to everyone involved, fans excluded, to keep their emotions in check and focus on the end goal.
“With him coming back you know it’s going to be a little extra, so it’s just going to be on us as a team to match that because we know the intensity that he brings because we’ve been around it for four or five years when he was making plays for us. It’s going to be fun,” White added.
“Every game is a new game. It’s a new challenge. Every year is a new challenge. They have a new team, (a) new coaching staff too, and new players. So, it’s just going to be on us to try and go out and limit the big time plays that they have, and just play together defense – team total defense, and play together football as far as all three phases complementing each other. If we do that, we’ll have a great chance.”
Kickoff is slated for 8:20 p.m. ET on Sunday in Western New York.
Editor’s babble: Many thanks to John Green for his contributions to our blog. You can also find John on Xwitter @JGreen_PRsports.
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