New Packers CB Trevon Diggs, Jeff Hafley Have Like-Minded Goal

GREEN BAY, Wis. – New Green Bay Packers cornerback Trevon Diggs and his new defensive coordinator, Jeff Hafley, are in agreement on one thing.

Is it possible for Diggs, the former All-Pro who was claimed off waivers on Wednesday and practiced on Thursday, to play on Sunday at the Minnesota Vikings?

“Yeah,” Diggs said.

That’s Hafley’s hope.

“To be completely honest with you, I would” like Diggs to play, Hafley said. “This game’s really important, so let me not skip ahead to the playoffs. But this game is really important. With our corner numbers the way they are, we need to make sure that he’s ready to go as we get going further ahead here.

“So, I would like to, and that’s why I think there’s a high level of we need to get him ready to go and I’d like to see what he can do. So, I can’t promise you that he is going to play or he isn’t going to play. This is all really, really quick, but we’re going to do everything we can and I would like to see him play.”

The Dallas Cowboys released Diggs on Tuesday. The Packers, having just placed Nate Hobbs and Kamal Hadden on injured reserve, decided to take a shot with the playoffs on the horizon.

“I was with my kids” when he found out, Diggs said. “I was about to take them to Dave & Busters, and then they call like, ‘You’ve got to get on the flight.’ I was like, ‘Oh, I can’t go to Dave & Busters.’ So, you know, it was a good moment that I shared with them, and I was super-excited.”

Diggs was having a disappointing season, and so were the Cowboys. Just like that, Diggs joined a playoff team.

“It’s a wonderful opportunity,” Diggs said. “I’m thankful for the organization giving me the chance, and I’m ready to come here and help win games.”

Much has been made of Diggs allowing a 158.3 passer rating when targeted this season. That’s the max passer rating and the worst in the NFL among the 93 corners to have played at least 250 coverage snaps, according to PFF.

Almost nothing has been made of Diggs ranking 12th in coverage snaps per reception or first in snaps per target. In terms of snaps per reception, Carrington Valentine is 21st and Keisean Nixon is 40th, for sake of comparison. Diggs has given up 16 catches in eight games.

“I still feel like I’m the best,” Diggs said.

Packers quarterback Jordan Love went up against Diggs in Week 4. Love targeted Diggs only once, which resulted in a negative-yardage completion. Diggs picked off Love early in the second quarter, though that was nullified by a 12-men penalty.

“He’s a good player. He’s done a lot of good things,” Love said. “I think the stats and the interceptions he’s created over the years, he’s an impact player. He can do that, so we’ll see what this week looks like for him. Obviously, just getting here, I’m not sure what that will look like for him but, hopefully, get him caught up to speed and things like that and see what he can do on the field for us and hopefully help us get some takeaways.”

Not Much Time for Trevon Diggs

The getting-him-up-to-speed part will be the challenge. Diggs said he landed in Appleton at about 9 p.m. Wednesday and was at his hotel at 10 p.m. Hafley met him for the first time before practice on Thursday.

“This is even quicker than getting into a Micah Parsons because Micah we at least had four days or five days to really study it and get him going,” Hafley said.

To some extent, playing cornerback is universal. Man coverage is man coverage. Cover-2 is Cover-2.

“The same coverages are the same coverages,” Diggs said.

So, from that perspective, Diggs could have stepped off the plane at 9 p.m. and played in a game while on his way to his hotel. But there are adjustments, calls and nuances that have to be learned.

“There’s a level of difficulty,” Hafley said, “but, saying that, it’s our job to make sure that he is ready to play, so we need to spend a ton of time with him, which DA’s probably doing right now and we need to get him ready.”

DA is position coach Derrick Ansley, the team’s defensive passing game coordinator. Ansley coached Diggs at Alabama and was part of his receiver-to-cornerback transition.

“It’s going to be trying to pick his brain and seeing what they called things and explaining what we call things and translate that language, and seeing what he’s done in the past to try to piece it together for him, and then figuring out what he can do and if he can play to allow him to do those things,” Hafley said.

“At the same time, with the playoffs right around the corner, we’ve got to speed him up fast because there’s not going to be a lot of practice reps. But that’s this league. We’ve been hit with some pretty hard injuries in that position. So, we’ll get him ready to go.”

Diggs was a second-round draft pick in 2020. In 2021, he led the NFL with 11 interceptions to earn first-team All-Pro. In 2022, he had three interceptions and 14 passes defensed to be picked for the Pro Bowl.

He missed most of 2023 with a torn ACL, and played in only 11 games in 2024 and eight games in 2025. After 17 interceptions and 49 passes defensed during his first three seasons, he has zero interceptions or passes defensed this season.

Fresh Start for Trevon Diggs

So, he certainly has not played like the “best” cornerback in the NFL, but he could give the Packers a boost for the playoffs.

“I think I just need to be myself, you know, be who I know I am,” Diggs said. “Go out there and perform and performing everything will take care of itself. I’m not chasing accolades. I’m not chasing anything. I’m chasing being a better me, being better every day (and) helping his team win.”

The Packers inherited the final three seasons of Diggs’ blockbuster five-year contract. In reality, though, this might be as little as a two-game rental.

But, who knows? Maybe Diggs will be an X-factor as part of a playoff run. The Packers are 26th in the NFL in takeaways. Their cornerbacks have just one interception. One of their starters, Carrington Valentine, was benched last week, only to return to the action when Hadden was injured.

“He know how to get that ball,” safety Xavier McKinney said. “He know how to get that ball. He’s a hell of a player. Shoot, he proven himself in this league. Yeah, I think everybody know who he is, what he could bring to a defense and to a team. So, it’s good to be back, reconnected with him, for sure.”

Sometimes, a change of scenery can mean everything. Perhaps Diggs’ career will be rejuvenated the next few weeks. Maybe the Packers will love what they see, and maybe Diggs will want to remain in Green Bay alongside his close friend and former Cowboys teammate Micah Parsons as well as former Alabama teammate McKinney.

“I want to be here as long as they want me to be here. For sure,” Diggs said. “You know, I like it here a lot. I’ve got relationships here already, and I would love to call this place home.”

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