Over the past 25 years, the New England Patriots have tortured the Buffalo Bills, but according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport the Bills finally beat their AFC East rival both on the field and off of it this season.
According to Rapoport, when the Minnesota Vikings were shopping wide receiver Stefon Diggs this offseason, it came down to the Bills and the Patriots as the final two teams. After the Bills offered four picks, which included the No. 22 overall pick in this year’s draft which turned into LSU receiver Justin Jefferson, the Patriots had an opportunity to counter. Rapoport reported that Bill Belichick and the Patriots declined and Diggs was brought to Buffalo.
Diggs has been one of the main reasons why the Bills are in the AFC Championship on Sunday. He finished the regular season with a league-leading 127 receptions and 1,535 yards. He also caught eight touchdown passes, including three against the Patriots in their second meeting of the season.
Diggs has also put together the best season of his career. He was named to the pro-bowl, he earned Associated Press First-Team All-Pro honors and he rewrote the Bills single-season record book for receptions, yards, and yards per game (95.9).
He’s given quarterback Josh Allen an elite No. 1 target on the outside and has taken the Bills receiving room to a whole new level.
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Diggs Has Been Playing Through an Oblique Injury
The Bills have never revealed the seriousness of his injury, but Diggs has been battling through an oblique injury since their matchup with the Miami Dolphins in Buffalo’s regular season finale.
The former Maryland receiver only played in the first half of Buffalo’s matchup with Miami and still recorded seven catches for 76 yards as the Bills won 56-26. He appeared on Buffalo’s injury report the following Monday as the Bills prepared for their AFC Wild Card matchup with the Indianapolis Colts.
Diggs recorded six catches for 128 yards and a touchdown against the Colts, then one week later, while still appearing on the injury report, Diggs went on to record eight catches on 11 targets for 106 yards and a touchdown against the Baltimore Ravens.
Through the playoffs, he’s tallied 234 of Allen’s 530 passing yards and has caught two touchdowns. He’s also averaged 117 yards per game. Although he’s been battling through the injury, Diggs has said all along that the injury is nothing to worry about and he’ll be fine moving forward.
Diggs is on Verge of Making NFL History
While Diggs has been rewriting the Bills single-season record books, he’s also on the verge of making NFL history. With 16 catches on Sunday, Diggs could surpass the NFL record of 156 receptions in a single-season that New Orleans Saints receiver Michael Thomas set last season.
Heading into Sunday’s matchup, Diggs has 141 catches this season and in a high scoring game against the Kansas City Chiefs, Diggs could come close. That’s also not the only record that Diggs could set on Sunday.
With six or more catches, he could become the first player in NFL history to tally six or more catches in 16 consecutive games, including the postseason. Buffalo’s Week 3 matchup against the Los Angeles Rams is the only time this season that Diggs recorded less than six receptions.
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Bills Beat Out AFC East Rival in Stefon Diggs Trade: Report