Stefon Diggs and Russell Wilson find new homes for the 2025 NFL season
Photo Credit: The Associated Press
Within the span of 30 minutes on Tuesday evening, two of the biggest remaining NFL free agents inked deals with new teams. Quarterback Russell Wilson signed a one-year, $21 million contract with the New York Giants before wide receiver Stefon Diggs agreed to a three-year, $69 million contract with the New England Patriots. Both deals were first reported by ESPN’s Senior NFL Insider Adam Schefter.
Wilson, 36, spent last season with the Pittsburgh Steelers, starting 11 games after missing the first six due to injury. Wilson started his campaign strong, winning five of his first six games with the Steelers. However, his play faded down the stretch, losing the last five games of the season including an AFC Wild Card Round loss to the Baltimore Ravens. Wilson finished his short stint with the Steelers with 2,482 passing yards, 18 total touchdowns, and five interceptions.
While the underlying numbers suggest that Wilson’s level of play has decreased in his last season with the Denver Broncos and only season with the Steelers, the 10-time Pro Bowl selection has shown, especially during his first six games with the Steelers, that he still has something left in his tank.
Wilson will return to MetLife Stadium where he won the Super Bowl in 2013 as the starting quarterback for the Seattle Seahawks. Wilson’s deal with the Giants includes $10.5 million guaranteed and numerous incentives.
Last Friday, the Giants signed veteran quarterback Jameis Winston to a two-year, $8 million contract. Winston spent last season with the Cleveland Browns, another team that reportedly showed interest in Wilson, starting seven games with a 2-5 record. With two veteran, capable quarterbacks in the building, and 26-year-old backup Tommy DeVito, the Giants now have more flexibility heading into the 2025 NFL Draft. Schefter reported that the Giants could still select a quarterback with their first-round pick but the signings of Wilson and Winston could allow for the Giants to take a position player with the third pick.
Shifting from the NFC East to the AFC East, the Patriots have found their new star wide receiver.
A full season removed from his fourth Pro Bowl selection, Diggs, 31, is back in a familiar division. After spending four seasons with the Buffalo Bills, Diggs has joined a division rival following an injury-shortened season with the Houston Texans. Under new Head Coach Mike Vrabel, the Patriots gave the 10-year NFL vet a three-year deal with $26 million guaranteed.
On April 23, 2024, the Bills traded Diggs, a 2024 sixth-round pick, and a 2025 fifth-round pick to the Texans for a 2025 second-round pick. In four seasons with the Bills, the wide receiver had 5,372 receiving yards and 37 touchdowns. He led the league with 1,535 receiving yards in 2020 and was subsequently named a first-team All-Pro. Before being traded to the Bills in March of 2020, the Maryland native spent the first five years of his career with the Minnesota Vikings.
Last year, Diggs joined second-year star quarterback C.J. Stroud and his high-powered offense in Houston. The Texans’ newest addition caught two touchdowns in his debut, a 29-27 road win against the Indianapolis Colts. Diggs caught just one touchdown in his next seven games before suffering a non-contact ACL tear in his right knee in Week 8. Diggs finished the season with 47 catches for 496 receiving yards and four total touchdowns. Sources told ESPN that Diggs is on track to return for Week 1 of the 2025 season.
The Patriots were looking for a veteran wide receiver who could aid in the development of their second-year quarterback, Drake Maye. Per ESPN, the Patriots made an aggressive push to sign free-agent receiver Chris Godwin before he returned to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The six-time Super Bowl champions quickly switched their focus to Diggs, who will now lead the receiver room in New England and give Maye a top-tier receiving target.
