May 12, 2025

The New England Patriots signed 31-year-old wide receiver Stefon Diggs (knee) to a three-year, $63 million contract ahead of the 2025 season. While many might assume that number ensures he'll be the team's No. 1 receiver moving forward, he tore his ACL around the middle of 2024. Typically, WRs going into a season where they'll turn 32 after having sustained a major knee injury the year before don't perform too well. He made offseason headlines for his infamous Memorial Day boating video, but things have settled down since then, and he reportedly looked good running routes and cutting. Diggs is on target and could be ready for Week 1 of the upcoming season. However, the Pats invested significant draft capital in rookie WR Kyle Williams, a talented and highly underrated route-runner and after-catch specialist. It's likely that Williams, who has a great combination of height, speed, and sudden releases on his routes, will take over the WR1 job in a short time. Diggs wasn't particularly efficient even in a slot-heavy role in 2024 with the Texans, and this year's free-agent WR market was very weak, so he probably got an inflated contract. Quarterback Drake Maye was excellent in 2024, and Diggs could have a valuable slot role yet again, but he might not finish above Williams this year if he is not ready by Week 1. Diggs carries a lot of risk and is currently WR50 in our latest RotoBaller rankings, making him a borderline WR4 entering upcoming fantasy football drafts.--John Johnson