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Rob Gronkowski, Julian Edelman Weighed in on Patriots Adding Stefon Diggs

Diggs signed with the Patriots on a three-year deal this week.

Eva Geitheim

Former Houston Texans wide receiver Stefon Diggs.
Former Houston Texans wide receiver Stefon Diggs. / Troy Taormina-Imagn Images
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The New England Patriots finally brought in a marquee name at the receiver position by signing Stefon Diggs to a three-year, $69 million contract on Tuesday. Diggs had visited the Patriots last week to meet with the team and do a physical, and he is now officially joining New England.

Before Diggs signed this week, former Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski and wide receiver Julian Edelman talked about the possibility of Diggs joining the team after his visit.

"I think it was the right move for New England to bring him in," Gronkowski said on the Dudes on Dudes podcast. "New England needs a guy, they need wide receivers, they need a No. 1. Stefon Diggs might not be that No. 1, but he will at least be a solid No. 2 and I'm sure he some big playmaking ability left in the tank. Thirty-one years old, coming off an ACL, he's working every day at it, he's already ahead of schedule, running full speed.

"I like Stefon Diggs in New England because Stefon Diggs is still pissed off at the Bills," Edelman said. "There's gonna be hunger and there's gonna be urgency, and there's gonna be a fire under his a— in the meeting room, when he's in New England, at practice, which they could use. They could use a little fire under their a— in that receiving room."

The Patriots have lacked a No. 1 receiver since their dynasty ended and are in desperate need of playmakers for quarterback Drake Maye. The team hasn't even had a receiver that's averaged over 60 yards per game since 2019, which was also the last time they had an 1,000-yard receiver. Diggs is coming off a torn ACL, but has six 1,000-yard seasons over his career and provides a proven target for Maye and the offense.

Along with Diggs' pedigree, Edelman believes he will be a good presence for a team that has multiple young receivers.

"No one ever second guesses how hard he works and the amount of work that he puts into his craft," Edelman added. "If you're getting a motivated Stefon Diggs, that could be really beneficial to the young football players in that young football room."

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Eva Geitheim
EVA GEITHEIM

Eva Geitheim is a contributor to the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Prior to joining SI in December 2024, she wrote for Newsweek, Gymnastics Now and Dodgers Nation. A Bay Area native, she has a bachelor's in communications from UCLA. When not writing, she can be found baking or re-watching Gilmore Girls.

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