Bills Central

Bills felt offense ‘didn’t need’ WR Stefon Diggs anymore prior to Texans trade

ESPN writer Jeremy Fowler wrote about the Buffalo Bills' offseason decision to trade Stefon Diggs ahead of the team's Week 5 clash with the Houston Texans.

Kyle Silagyi

Jamie Germano/Rochester Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK
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The Buffalo faithful is likely wearied by discourse regarding Stefon Diggs, the former centerpiece of the Bills’ receiving corps who the team traded to the Houston Texans in early April. Conversations about his departure and the ramifications his absence would have on the Buffalo offense were had all summer, only natural given his status as a perennial Pro Bowler. The Bills’ offensive prowess through the first few weeks of the 2024 campaign has silenced discussions some, but the wideout has again been thrust to the forefront of conversations in Western New York this week as Buffalo prepares to face off against the Texans this Sunday afternoon.

ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler penned an article breaking down the offseason divorce ahead of this week’s hotly anticipated contest, gaining insight and quotes from several within the Bills organization. The article does not give a definitive answer as to why Buffalo moved the six-time 1,000-yard receiver, as no one reason may exist; the piece instead purports a number of different theories, among them Diggs potentially being upset at wide receivers coach Chad Hall’s 2023 departure and the receiver generally being “open to a change of scenery.”

Related: AFC Analytical Power Rankings: Do the Bills fall entering NFL Week 5?

The article also raises Buffalo’s shift in offensive philosophy as a possible reason for Diggs’ departure, and this, from a 30,000-foot view, seems to be the primary reason why the 30-year-old no longer has a locker at One Bills Drive. Diggs was used to averaging more than 150 targets per season with the Bills, as this had been the case since his 2020 arrival; his role in the offense slightly diminished after the team fired offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey and promoted quarterbacks coach Joe Brady to the post midway through the 2023 campaign. He tallied double-digit targets in six of Buffalo’s first ten games of the campaign, something he did just twice after Brady took over in Week 11.

The Bills’ offense found renewed success and life after Brady’s promotion, this despite Diggs’ comparative lack of production. The wideout was unhappy with his lesser role (something he’s since alluded to), and the offense’s success sans All-Pro caliber production from its No. 1 receiver led Buffalo to believe that it could live without Diggs moving forward.

Stefon Diggs
Jamie Germano/Rochester Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK

"For a while it was, 'No way we can play without this dude,'" a Bills source told Fowler. "But I thought to myself, 'Oh, maybe we can do this without him.'"

Another team source confirmed the organizational mindset with a quote to Fowler, saying of Diggs “Tremendous player, but the offense didn’t need him anymore.”

As alluded to in the quotes, Diggs was once the focus of the Buffalo offense, topping 100 receptions and over 1,200 receiving yards in each of his first three seasons in Orchard Park. General tensions grew as his tenure progressed, but the team kept them under wraps given his importance to the offense; when a path to sustained offensive success sans Diggs presented itself, the team no longer felt it necessary to mask the discomfort.

"You always have to worry about how he feels," a Bills source told Fowler. "That wears on a locker room."

Josh Allen, Stefon Diggs
Eric Hartline-Imagn Images

Fowler notes that the Bills had “no intention” of trading Diggs once the offseason started, but that it was a “mutual decision” between the team and player by the time the deal was ultimately executed. The reporter also wrote that some around the league felt Buffalo was “lucky” to receive the value it did for the wideout (a second-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft), as Houston may have been the only team seriously interested in him.

Though it’s still early days, the divorce, thus far, appears to be mutually beneficial; Diggs has caught 25 passes for 233 yards and two touchdowns in Houston, while Buffalo’s offense has looked generally strong through four games. Quarterback Josh Allen looks like a bonafide MVP contender while the offense has averaged 30.5 points per game, good for second in the league.

There wasn’t a definitive moment that sparked the end of Diggs’ time in Orchard Park, but as is the case with so many things in life, it looks as though it was simply time for a change. The eyes of the football world will be watching this Sunday as the wideout faces off against his former team; kickoff is scheduled for 1:00 p.m.

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Kyle Silagyi
KYLE SILAGYI

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