NFL analyst breaks down Stefon Diggs trade to Houston, claims WR could earn $25,000,000 per year
Stefon Diggs recently broke NFL Twitter by being traded from the Buffalo Bills to the Houston Texans for draft consideration. The perennial Pro Bowler will take his talents to Houston and catch passes from 2024 offensive rookie of the year, C. J. Stroud.
Following the trade, the Houston Texans reworked his contract, so Stefon Diggs will spend just one year with the franchise before becoming an unrestricted free agent at the end of the 2024 NFL season.
NFL analyst Tom Pelissero, on the "Rich Eisen Show," analyzed the situation.
Pelissero explained his theory for why the Houston Texans made a one-year rental with the Stefon Diggs deal:
"You know, with Stefon, he works harder than anybody on the practice field. He's a tone-setter, all those things. Stefon also likes the drama; he likes a little bit of drama. Sometimes that's why every offseason, you get cryptic tweets and other things."
"If you're trading him from Buffalo, to Houston, and these are conversations that went all the way back to the combine. You might want to make the guy feel good and limit that drama right out of the gate. So what do you do? You give them a little bit extra cash in 2024? You then say, Alright, we're gonna lop off those additional years of your deal. That does two things."
He continued:
One, yes, it may make the guy a little bit happier about going into a different team with a bunch of people that he doesn't know. But two, it also accelerates your possibility of a compensatory pick if and when Diggs leaves in March of 2025.
"In other words, if he left those future years on the deal, then after the season, Diggs either wants a new contract or, you know, if things don't go well, you're probably releasing him. Well, when you release the guy, you don't get a compensatory pick."
"The Texans have set themselves up in a situation where their best case scenario is to find Diggs goes out there, plays like the digs that we've seen for years, becomes a cornerstone of the franchise, and you happily give him close to top dollar, which is, you know, somewhere in that $25 million year range, probably for receiver at this stage in his career. If it doesn't go well, he walks in free agency,
"The Texans has gone buck wild with trades and free agency this year, maybe next year, they're anticipating, okay, we're probably going to have more free agent losses, that's going to work in our favor in the compensatory pick formula. So you ended up giving a two right now to get Diggs. And if he leaves, you can be very well beginning back at three and 2026. And you're not giving up ultimately that much."
Stefon Diggs joins a stacked wide receiver tandem in Houston
The Houston Texans made the playoffs in 2023 on the back of impressive play from their defense and their star quarterback, C. J. Stroud. However, such a run would have been impossible without their stunning group of wide receivers.
The Texans wide receiver room saw impressive contributions from Nico Collins, Tank Dell and John Metchie III. These phenomenal players provided great outlets for Stroud to get the Texans a playoff berth.
Stefon Diggs will join arguably the most stacked wide receiver room in his career. It's a great opportunity for him to prove that he can rack up big numbers without Josh Allen. Diggs should be pumped by the amount of competition for the WR1 spot.