One of the biggest questions surrounding the New England Patriots this offseason is what to do with veteran wide receiver Stefon Diggs. The 32-year-old veteran made a massive impact on the Patriots both on and off the field in the 2025 season, but his contract becomes much steeper in 2026.
Diggs signed a three-year, $63.5 million deal with New England last offseason, but a lot of that money was deferred to the latter two years on the contract: his cap hit in 2025 was just over $10.5 million, but will be $26.5 million in 2026 if it remains unchanged. Diggs will also have $6 million guaranteed if he’s still on the team on March 13, just a couple of weeks away.
So, there’s a real debate going on around his status: did Diggs do enough in 2025 to warrant paying him more than twice as much in 2026, a season where he’ll turn 33? Can the Patriots afford to pay him more than $26 million while also improving the rest of the roster? Or, can they afford to lose his impact both on and off the field?
Diggs stepped up as a locker room leader in 2025, and his impact on the Pats Super Bowl run cannot be understated.
Wolf Dodges Questions Regarding Diggs
Patriots VP of Player Personnel Eliot Wolf spoke to the media on Tuesday, Feb. 24 for the first time since the Super Bowl. When asked about Diggs future with the team, Wolf dodged the question, opting to say that he wouldn’t speak about specific players, though he did make unambiguous claims about some other players.
âIâm not going to get into any specific players today,â Wolf said when asked about Diggs. âThere are certain conversations that weâre having, and weâll see what happens with everyone.
Yes, Stefon had a tremendous season. The leadership that he showed was great. And these are conversations that weâll continue to have and weigh everything and talk about different things as we move forward.â
Patriots beat reporter Chad Graff gave his thoughts on the situation as well:
“Wolfâs less-than-definitive response on Diggs could suggest that the Patriots are anchoring for potential negotiations ahead, hoping the veteran receiver will take a pay cut to remain with the team,” Graff wrote. “Or it could be a sign that they might cut Diggs in a cap-saving move before mid-March.”
On the one hand, Diggs was the teamâs best wide receiver last season, posting 1,013 yards, and there arenât a lot of free-agent options to replace him at the position,” Graff continued. “On the other hand, thatâs a massive cap number for a 32-year-old wideout.”
Patriots Weighing Options for Diggs
The uncertainty surrounding Diggs begs the question of where New England would turn if it does decide to cut ties with Diggs this offseason.
There are plenty of wide receiver options on the free agent market this offseason. Alec Pierce has been heavily rumored to be a target for the Patriots because of his scheme fit as a deep threat for Drake Maye. The problem with Pierce is that he’ll cost somewhere in the neighborhood of $25 million per season, very close to what Diggs would be making anyway.
Diggs and Pierce are certainly different types of receivers, but with Kayshon Boutte and Demario Douglas already providing deep targets, there’s an argument to be made that Pierce would be redundant and it would make more sense to just pay Diggs that money and keep him as an intermediate threat on the team.
Other free agent receivers who have been linked to the Patriots are Wan’Dale Robinson and Tyreek Hill, and, as always, A.J. Brown remains a trade target because of his connection with Mike Vrabel.
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