The New England Patriots came up just short when it mattered, but there’s no time to dwell on their Super Bowl defeat. Retooling their roster to compete and get the job done in 2026 is the goal, and with that comes important decisions.
One decision that they’ll have to make is whether to keep Stefon Diggs. One NFL insider predicts that the Patriots will release Diggs during the offseason.
Patriots Predicted to Cut Stefon Diggs
The Patriots relied on Diggs to be their main target for their star QB Drake Maye. Maye struggled in his rookie season with poor receiving options, but he emerged as a star once he had a bona fide No. 1 receiver in Diggs.
Maye was the runner-up in MVP, and Diggs bounced back from a season-ending injury with 1,013 receiving yards. The problem was that Diggs did not show up in the playoffs. In his defense, the entire offense barely showed up.
Diggs played in all four playoff games, but only tallied 110 yards. His lack of production in the playoffs led NFL analyst Greg Auman to predict the Patriots will cut Diggs. The Patriots’ wide receiver is set to earn $21 million in salary after he signed a three-year, $63.5 million deal last offseason.
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The Patriots don’t owe any guaranteed money to Diggs for the 2026 season, which leaves them an easy way out of his contract if they don’t want him back. They will have to eat just $8 million in dead cap, but they aren’t handcuffed to a major financial loss.
The issue is that Diggs is not getting any younger and could begin to decline at any time.
He ran into legal trouble toward the end of the season, too. He was charged with felony strangulation, among other charges, for a dispute that occurred in December.
The Patriots have to weigh the benefits of keeping him around against the consequences. The benefits of what they can do with the money they will save from cutting Diggs are an important piece of the puzzle as well. He’s owed a solid payday that can be given to others to improve the roster.
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New England will have to get a top target for Maye if they decide to get rid of Diggs. He finished as the 4th-ranked receiver in PFSN’s WR Impact score with a grade of 87.0. The Super Bowl opened up eyes that the Patriots might need more than just Diggs to get them over the hump.
If he couldn’t step up when it mattered, the Patriots might have to find someone who will, even if it’s not a receiver. Auman thinks they won’t be willing to dish out the expensive amount they will owe Diggs and will take their $21 million back and splash their cash elsewhere.
