The Patriots thought that they may have solved an immediate problem at the wide receiver position by signing veteran free agent Stefon Diggs, however, he’s already made a big distraction off the field and the season hasn’t even started yet.
There’s a video of Diggs enjoying himself at a boat party dancing with his girlfriend, Cardi B, along with other women as well. The video also clearly shows Diggs handing out what’s being referred to as an “unknown substance” to a group of women while on the boat.
It’s not a good look by any means. During an open media availability session at OTAs this past week, head coach Mike Vrabel was asked if the team would need to get involved and address this situation. He was asked by Karen Guregian, one of the longtime veteran reporters whom Vrabel has a great amount of respect for.
“Well, it’s something that we’re aware of. And obviously, we want to make great decisions on and off the field. And we’re hoping that with our time here on the field today, when we don’t a script and we’re on the call periods, that we’re making great decisions," Vrabel said. "So the message will be the same for all our players that we’re trying to make great decisions and any conversations that I’ve had with Stefon will remain between him and I and the club.”
Vrabel went on to remind the media that the current OTA sessions are still voluntary, as to explain that the video surfacing isn’t linked to Diggs not being at the OTAs.
The thing we know about Vrabel is that he doesn’t tolerate unnecessary problems caused by a player when it comes to the football team. During Vrabel’s introductory press conference with the Patriots, he said that he’s going to build a culture that’s built on being able to put the team first and also care about somebody other than yourself.
“We’re going to earn the right to be here everyday. We’re going to remove entitlement from our football team. … we want to treat every player the same way they treat the team.”
If Vrabel is staying true to his word, he might have to make an example out of this situation with Diggs by suspending him to begin the season for conduct detrimental to the team. Simple as that. Regardless of whatever the substance is or isn’t, it sets the precedent that no matter who makes a mistake, there are consequences to be paid.
Now, there’s a loophole that could be done with this, depending on how Vrabel handles it. As Diggs is still continuing to work back from his ACL surgery, and looks good from the videos we’ve seen, it’s still fair to wonder if he’ll be ready for Week 1.
If Diggs isn’t going to be ready for Week 1, then the team could theoretically suspend him for a game or two without putting him on injured reserve, which is a three-week requirement.
The inverse to that, however, if he’s not going to be ready for Week 1, the team should consider putting him on IR so that he can continue progressing with his rehab, but it’s also a form of punishment as he wouldn’t be allowed to return until Week 3.
Another option would be to just suspend him for the first game that he’s available to play. It shows that it doesn’t matter how valuable a player might be, that he’s still held to the same standard and accountability.
It’s worth mentioning that Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer believes that Vrabel could cut Diggs and he asked him to stay away from the team because of the boat video.
"I sort of think all things are on the table. I think, really to me at least, it’s going to boil down to what Stef told Vrabel and how believable it was. The league is going to look into this and hit a dead end because they’re not going to be able to prove what was in the bag. There’s no way to prove what was in the bag. … if the team wants to recoup any of the guaranteed money, they need to cut him right away."Albert Breer on Stefon Diggs
It’s also worth mentioning that Scott Zolak of 98.5 The Sports Hub said that he’s heard there’s more involved than just the boat video, suggesting that he’s not all “bought in” to what the Pats are trying to do this season.
"I came to this show yesterday with the knowledge that it is on the table. That it is being thought of. And it’s not just the boat. It’s not just the boat. There’s some other things that I’ve heard that out some things in question."Scott Zolak on Stefon Diggs
At the end of the day, Vrabel is going to do what’s right for the football team. I believe Vrabel is going to make an example out of this situation in some way. We’ll have to wait and see what it is.