As the New England Patriots took the field on Wednesday afternoon for their second OTA session open to the media, there was a notable absence in wide receiver Stefon Diggs.
The 31-year-old hasn’t been a total stranger to the Patriots’ offseason program as he recovers from a torn ACL suffered last season, however, and was even seen at practice last Thursday. Diggs was then captured in a now-viral video hanging out on a boat this weekend—so his absence raised some questions.
Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel addressed said video when asked about it ahead of Wednesday’s practice:
“It’s something that we’re aware of,” he explained. “And obviously we want to make great decisions on and off the field. And we’re hoping with our time out on the field today—and when we don’t have a script and we’re on the call periods—that we’re making great decisions. And so the message will be the same for all our players, that we’re trying to make great decisions. And any conversations that I’ve had with Stefon will remain between him and I and the club.”
New England signed Diggs to a three-year, $69-million contract in late March, adding him to a budding room of Kendrick Bourne, Ja’Lynn Polk, Kayshon Boutte, and DeMario Douglas—among others. The veteran has since been adamant that he’s ahead of schedule, and reports are that he’ll be ready for Week 1 of the 2025 NFL season.
