NFL opts not to comment on Patriots WR Stefon Diggs’s boat video
Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel said the team was "aware" of the video involving Diggs earlier this week.
Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel was willing to address some of the questions about the viral video involving wide receiver Stefon Diggs on Wednesday. The NFL, on the other hand, is side-stepping the matter, at least for now.
NFL Vice President of Communications Brian McCarthy told Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio that the league “will decline comment” on the Diggs video.
Diggs, who signed with the Patriots in March, was seen in a video showing an unknown pink substance to three women while on a boat over Memorial Day weekend in Florida. As that video emerged on social media earlier in the week, Vrabel said that the team was “aware” of it when he met with reporters ahead of Wednesday’s voluntary practice.
“Obviously, we want to make great decisions on and off the field,” Vrabel told reporters. “We’re hoping that with our time here on the field today, that when we don’t have a script and we’re on the call periods, that we’re making great decisions. The message will be the same for all our players, that we’re trying to make great decisions. Any conversations that I’ve had with Stefon will remain between him, I, and the club.”
Diggs wasn’t in attendance for Wednesday’s practice, but he was seen participating in the Patriots’ voluntary offseason program prior to the viral video. Vrabel said that the team has remained in contact with Diggs.
“This is a voluntary part of our offseason program,” Vrabel said. “Every player that’s not here, which there aren’t many, have been in communication with me and their position coaches.”
It’s unknown if Diggs was present when the Patriots reconvened for the voluntary portion of their offseason program on Friday. However, his future with the team has been called into question as a result of the video. Sports Illustrated‘s Albert Breer mentioned that New England releasing Diggs could be how this saga ends.
“The point is, they’re trying to establish a culture and the way you do things, and this sort of thing can undermine all of that,” Breer said during a recent appearance on 98.5 the Sports Hub “Toucher and Hardy.” “So, that’s what they have to weigh right now. If [Diggs] falls on the sword and does everything right, then fine.
“But, if Mike [Vrabel] thinks he is lying to him I just wouldn’t doubt Mike having the stomach to cut him. And the thing is, if you’re going to cut him then you kind of have to do it right away.”
Breer noted, though, that the Patriots would have to make a decision on Diggs’s future with the team sooner rather than later if they wanted to recoup his $12 million signing bonus. Diggs received that bonus as part of a three-year, $69 million deal he signed to join the Patriots, which included $26 million guaranteed.
From the NFL’s standpoint, Florio noted that the league could place Diggs in its substance-abuse program based on “[b]ehavior . . . which, in the judgment of the Medical Director, exhibits physical, behavioral, or psychological signs or symptoms of misuse of Substances of Abuse.” Stage 1 placement in the program comes with enhanced drug testing and potential fines, but players don’t face a possible suspension until the fourth violation “of the requirement to cooperate with testing protocol or clinical care requirements,” according to Florio.
Diggs is also recovering from an ACL tear, which he suffered in late October while playing with the Texans during the 2024 season. It was reported at the time of Diggs’s signing with the Patriots that he could be ready when the 2025 regular season opens, but Vrabel didn’t dive into specifics when asked about the wide receiver’s rehab on Wednesday.
“The timelines and the prognosis and everything, we’re working hard to get him back and to be ready to go,” Vrabel said. “When he’s here, we’ll coach him and we’ll have him ready to go.”
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