FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — It is not usually a good sign when one player is the subject of the first six questions to the head coach in a May press conference, but that’s the situation Stefon Diggs finds himself.
Mike Vrabel was peppered on Wednesday minutes before his New England Patriots started their OTA session (the second open to the media) about his wide receiver. Diggs had gone viral in the hours leading up to Vrabel stepping in front of a microphone after a video emerged of the veteran partying on a yacht and handing what appeared to be a pink substance in a baggie to a woman on the vessel.
Vrabel said team is aware of the situation and confirmed he had spoken to Diggs just like he has with every player on the roster, but would not divulge any more about their conversation. Diggs was not present for this OTA session. While the workouts are voluntary, his absence Wednesday — on the heels of what was seen in the video — is not how he should want to begin the next chapter of his career with a no-nonsense coach like Vrabel breathing down his neck.
“Obviously, we want to make great decisions on and off the field,” Vrabel said.
Diggs was present during New England’s OTA session on May 22 that was closed to the media, but this is an inauspicious start for the receiver, who the Patriots are expecting big things from after giving him a three-year, $63.5 million contract he signed in March. New England has been starved of a top-of-the-line wide receiver for years and has not seen a 1,000-yard wideout since Julian Edelman in 2019.
Diggs is coming off a season-ending injury that cut short his one year in Houston, who he joined after falling out of favor in Buffalo. Diggs’ divorce from the Bills and QB Josh Allen, who he repeatedly voiced frustrations with, colored his reputation as a superstar-level receiver with, yes, the diva qualities of a superstar wide receiver.
New England expects Diggs to be the No. 1 option for second-year quarterback Drake Maye and even a mentor for what is a young receiver room. If this is an early sign that Diggs is going to fall short of that, New England’s offense will be in trouble.
“Again, the timelines and the prognosis and everything, we’re working hard to get him back and to be ready to go,” Vrabel said when asked about how Diggs is progressing physically. “When he’s here, we’ll coach him and we’ll have him ready to go.”
This is just the latest development in a multi-year saga gripping the depth chart: Issues at receiver. Diggs will claim one roster spot, as will 2025 third-round pick Kyle Williams and likely slot receiver DeMario Douglas. Beyond that, it’s hard to call anyone else a lock.
New England’s other free agent acquisition, Mack Hollins, has been in street clothes during the two OTA practices open to the media, while 2024 second-round pick Ja’Lynn Polk has been limited during the sessions we’ve seen, working off the side with an assistant coach and not taking part in competitive drills. Fellow 2024 draftee Javon Baker has struggled at times with drops. Meanwhile, Kendrick Bourne and Kayshon Boutte have both been participating during OTAs, but their status shouldn’t be cemented as both have been involved in trade rumors.
That’s a long way of illustrating that New England’s receiver room is pretty clouded at the moment. Diggs was meant to be the anchor to help steer them through that uncertainty below him, but now he’s become a question mark himself.
For more on what else unfolded during Wednesday’s OTA session, check out our notes below.
Drake Maye improved … slightly
The last time we saw Maye on the field, he threw four interceptions and sent alarm bells off from Foxborough up to Bangor, Maine. On Wednesday, the second-year quarterback did have a clean practice with zero interceptions, but he also wasn’t throwing it around the yard, either. The competitive periods during this second OTA open to the media were less so than the first. There were a lot of screen passes and quick throws from Maye throughout the practice, and I don’t believe I saw him throw much down the field. If he did, it was mostly up the middle of the field to Hunter Henry, rather than anything down the sidelines. His best throw of the day went to Henry as Maye rolled out to his right and zipped a somewhat sidearm pass to the veteran tight end in stride. By my count, I had Maye completing 10 of his 18 passes. It’s better. But the offense — and Maye — still feels like it’s going through growing pains, however.
Defense continues to outperform offense
Of course, there are no pads at this juncture of the offseason program, but the defense has been playing hard through the two practices open to the media. The initial practice last week featured four interceptions off of Drake Maye, and this week it was corner Miles Battle who had the lone interception on the day. He recorded the turnover against backup quarterback Joshua Dobbs, but the ball was dropped by wide receiver John Jiles, so it’s hard to fault the veteran.
Elsewhere, I noticed the defensive line batting down a handful of balls at the line of scrimmage, with defensive tackles Joshua Farmer and Milton Williams getting their hands on the football. From a pass-rushing standpoint, I credited Anferee Jennings and Christian Ellis with would-be sacks.
Coachable moment for Javon Baker
Javon Baker had one of the more notable catches of the day, hauling in a deep pass from quarterback Ben Wooldridge down the left sideline for a touchdown. However, the second-year wideout clearly pushed off his defender in what would’ve been called offensive pass interference in an actual game. On top of the would-be infraction, Baker could be seen celebrating after the play, and delayed the offense from getting another play off. The offense was huddled, waiting for Baker to return, and it was pretty evident that Vrabel wanted to keep the pace up, but it was briefly bogged down. Vrabel could be seen talking to Baker as they walked off the field.
Ja’Lyn Polk among players limited
As we noted above, Polk continues to be limited, working off to the side with a member of the staff and not participating in competitive 11-on-11 drills. Meanwhile, offensive linemen Vederian Lowe and Jared Wilson were also limited.
After missing the start of the offseason program following the death of his father, veteran running back Rhamondre Stevenson was present for Wednesday’s session. He was limited as he got back up to speed.
“I want to support him through this process the best that we can,” Vrabel said before practice. “That’s probably a little bit more difficult. He doesn’t know us as well. His communication, I appreciated. It’s great to have him back. We’ll work him along and make sure that he’s ready to get out there. I don’t know how much you’ll see him in some of the live team action. I don’t think that’s fair to him to just throw him back out there. There’s certainly a return-to-play, like a lot of players will have over the course of the year.”
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