Bills 'Privately Open' to Stefon Diggs Trade? Truth Inside the Rumor
Are tempers boiling over in Orchard Park? Maybe so. Does whatever conflict that exists cause the Buffalo Bills to be truly plotting a trade of their star receiver Stefon Diggs? Almost certainly not.
So what is the origin of the "report'' that indicates otherwise? The core of this "hot rumor'' comes from Denver Broncos insider Benjamin Allbright, one of the most plugged-in NFL voices in media. On his podcast, Allbright spoke on the Diggs story and speculated about the Bills' options should they find themselves unable to find peace.
Allbright did say on "Broncos Country Tonight'' that it has been suggested to him that regarding trading Diggs, "privately,'' the Bills would "consider it under the right circumstances.'' And that quote - standing alone - is what is being aggregated into a major news story that requires proper framing and added context.
Why? Because one breath after saying that, Allbright added, "The dead cap on him is absurdly high. ... destructively high. ... It's a nightmare logistically. ... I just don't think Buffalo has the ability make that happen.''
And in the aggregation of Allbright's monologue, that portion of his thoughts has largely been omitted. So ... we contacted Allbright to give him a chance to clarify, to add context and to properly frame his thoughts.
"I stand by what I said, but it's about the entirety of what I said,'' Allbright tells BillsCentral.com at SI. "It shouldn't be characterized as a 'news report'; this is me speculating about what it might take for the Broncos to acquire Diggs if the Buffalo Bills did move on.
"The Bills' thoughts on this are legitimate,'' Allbright added. "But so are the obstacles that make this a conversation about ideas, not one about breaking news about a trade.''
Our interpretation of Allbright's comments include an emphasis of "under the right circumstances.'' Diggs being "frustrated" with the Bills for not having signing DeAndre Hopkins (which a source tells BillsCentral.com is untrue)? Diggs' being involved in a "personal'' clash with QB Josh Allen (the claim of Robert Griffin III)? Diggs being unhappy because he wants more involvement in offensive play-calling (which we are told is indeed true)?
There are no "right circumstances.'' As we've pointed out here before, if the Bills were to trade Diggs now, they would be forced to eat $44 million in dead money. And thus ... the virtual death of any 2023 "right circumstances.''
The best answer for the Super Bowl-contending Bills is the obvious one: Work - with charm or sacrifice or persuasion or force - to get Stefon Diggs to get with the program.
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