New Diggs: Recently signed Bills WR assigned Stefon Diggs' jersey number

Chase Claypool has taken over the uniform number of the most productive wide receiver in recent Buffalo Bills history.

Oct 8, 2023; Miami Gardens, Florida, USA; Miami Dolphins wide receiver Chase Claypool stands on the / Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports

Break out your sewing machines—there’s a new No. 14 in Western New York.

Recently signed wide receiver Chase Claypool has been assigned No. 14 by the Buffalo Bills, marking the return of the uniform number to the team’s receiving corps after the offseason departure of Stefon Diggs.

Buffalo Bills WR Chase Claypool (@ChaseClaypool) is wearing number 14. Last assigned to Stefon Diggs. #BillsMafia pic.twitter.com/fgQzbcIAi3

— NFL Jersey Numbers (@nfl_jersey_num) May 3, 2024

It’s a uniform number that Buffalo fans have grown accustomed to expecting production out of, as Diggs, who was traded to the Houston Texans in April, established himself as one of the best wide receivers in the NFL throughout his four years with the Bills. He caught 445 passes for 5,372 yards and 37 touchdowns throughout his stint with the team, earning two All-Pro selections as he became Buffalo’s fourth-all-time leading wideout.

Claypool’s resume is just slightly less impressive than that of Diggs. A second-round pick of the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 2020 NFL Draft, Claypool flashed as a rookie, picking up 889 yards from scrimmage and 11 total touchdowns. He totaled 956 yards from scrimmage in the 2021 NFL season, but his scoring production regressed significantly, dropping from 11 touchdowns to just two.

Effort concerns and the emergence of wideout George Pickens soon pushed Claypool out of Pittsburgh, as he was traded to the Chicago Bears midway through the 2022 campaign. Character questions persisted as Chicago’s offense struggled, prompting the Bears to move him to the Miami Dolphins in 2023. Over his 19 combined games in Chicago and Miami, Claypool caught 22 passes for 217 yards. 

Related: Jokes aside, Bills' signing of Chase Claypool is a low-risk, high-reward move

He’s very much a reclamation project in Buffalo, a low-risk, (potentially) high-reward signing in which the Bills hope they can make something of the physical 25-year-old who once ran a 4.42-second 40-yard dash. He has an opportunity to carve out a spot in Buffalo’s revamped receiving corps sans Diggs and Gabriel Davis, but he’s more than likely a camp body who's off the roster by Week 1.

Perhaps the most interesting (or funny) element of this number assignment is Claypool’s jersey number history—he’s never worn No. 14. He wore No. 83 at Notre Dame, No. 11 in Pittsburgh, and No. 10 in Chicago before returning to No. 83 in Miami. All of those numbers are currently taken in Buffalo, hence why Claypool has been assigned a number with perhaps insurmountable recent history attached to it.