The Patriots had a chance to match the Bills in the Stefon Diggs trade talks. They didn’t, and Tom Brady swiftly departed.
The New England Patriots were a fingernail away from opting in to receiving the biggest difference-making wide receiver in their conference this year.
Alas, they chose not to match the competing offer, and a house of cards, perilously close to collapsing anyway, finally gave way the very next day.
Oh, and did we mention that competing offer was coming from (horror sound effects) inside the division?!
The Buffalo Bills supercharged Josh Allen’s development this season by giving him the greatest safety valve wide receiver in the league in 2020 when they traded for Stefon Diggs, paving the way for Minnesota to add his replacement in Justin Jefferson. But did you know that, before the Vikings shook Buffalo’s clammy hand, they circled back to Bill Belichick and the Patriots to give them a chance to match the offer on the table?
Spoiler alert: no match.
The trade that shook the AFC — then-#Vikings WR Stefon Diggs to the #Bills — developed in a mere 6 hours. And at the end, it was Buffalo vs the #Patriots for Diggs.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 24, 2021
My story on the backstory: https://t.co/x59hnv3A31
NFL insider Ian Rapoport dropped the painful truth on us on Sunday morning, a few hours before the Bills kicked off in the AFC Title Game, where the Patriots usually reside:
"Sources say that when the Minnesota Vikings were poised to deal star receiver Stefon Diggs on March 16 in a blockbuster trade that included a first-round pick, it was the Bills and New England Patriots as the two final suitors.In fact, before Minnesota received four picks — including a first-round pick — from Buffalo for the playmaker, they called New England to give them a chance to match or improve the offer. When Bill Belichick and the Patriots declined, Diggs was off to the Bills.“I try not to get too caught up in the past,” Diggs told reporters this week. “I’ll definitely think about it when it’s over. Hopefully not any time soon. I don’t want this moment to pass me by.”"
Yes, the price was steep. But for one team within the division’s walls, it was very much worth it.
If anything, this confirms to us that the Patriots had moved on from Tom Brady long before the divorce had become official.
While New England surely had ruled out adding expensive weapons for their aging quarterback long before March 16, it’s still stunning that Brady officially announced his departure the very next day.
#Vikings-#Bills trade happened on March 16, #Patriots miss out on the star WR.
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) January 24, 2021
On March 17, Tom Brady announces he decided he won't return to the #Patriots for the 2020 season.
If Belichick had finally managed to get Brady some offensive talent like Diggs, maybe Brady stays. https://t.co/FA0eqVrQhH
This relationship was dead on arrival of Diggs in Buffalo; the final blow was certainly delivered well before that mid-March deadline.
Still, it’s depressing to connect the dots and realize that New England could’ve at least prevented their rival from reaching the stratosphere this season.
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