Wide receiver Stefon Diggs became the latest free agent addition to the New England Patriots, moving to his fourth NFL team as he attempts to recapture his Pro Bowl level of productivity.
Two people familiar with the situation confirmed the deal Tuesday. Diggs’s three-year contract will be worth as much as $69 million, according to one of those people.
Diggs, 31, leaves the Houston Texans as an unrestricted free agent. He must return from a torn ACL in his right knee that cut short his lone season with Houston. He had 47 catches for 496 yards and three touchdowns in eight games last season before suffering the injury in October.
He was a four-time Pro Bowl selection with the Buffalo Bills before they traded him to the Texans last offseason. Diggs topped 100 catches and surpassed 1,100 receiving yards in each of his four seasons with the Bills; he and quarterback Josh Allen formed one of the NFL’s best passing-game combinations.
Diggs, a former Maryland standout, began his NFL career with five seasons with the Minnesota Vikings. He had two 1,000-yard receiving seasons for the Vikings. He has 857 catches for 10,491 yards and 70 touchdowns in his 10 NFL seasons.
If healthy, he becomes the top target for second-year quarterback Drake Maye in New England. The Patriots are coming off two straight 4-13 seasons. They have had three consecutive non-playoff seasons and do not have a postseason victory since winning the Super Bowl to conclude the 2018 season.
They hired Mike Vrabel as their coach in January after firing Jerod Mayo just one season into his tenure as Bill Belichick’s successor. Maye provided glimpses of potential stardom in his 12 starts as a rookie after being selected third in last year’s draft, but it was clear he needed more talent around him. The Patriots have been active during a free agent frenzy in which they also added defensive tackle Milton Williams, pass rusher Harold Landry III, linebacker Robert Spillane, cornerback Carlton Davis, tackle Morgan Moses, center Garrett Bradbury and wideout Mack Hollins, among others.
