It’s safe to say Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen is probably sick of being asked about not having Stefon Diggs on his offense over and over and over again. But this weekend, things are different.
After all, the Bills are facing the man they traded away in the offseason on what’s considered one of the best games of Week 5 around the NFL. So naturally, Diggs’ complicated relationship with his former team are going to happen.
This time, Allen approached the conversation from a different approach and instead of talking about how the Bills offense has moved on (as it should), he stopped to send a special message about what Diggs has meant to him.
“I got a lot of love for him, I still do,” Allen told reporters via Dan Fetes. “The things he did for me in my career and the things he did in a Buffalo Bill uniform won’t be forgotten anytime soon, especially from me.”
Bills fans know exactly what Allen is talking about. Although Diggs’ time in Buffalo ended on a sour note, he was the co-author of many special moments of one of the franchise’s most successful eras. It’s only fair that the quarterback recognizes him for it.
With that being said, Allen is a seasoned NFL veteran by now, and he won’t get caught up in his feelings. This is a business, after all.
“At the same time, going into Year 7, I understand the business and the aspect of what the league is,” Allen added. “Again, I’m just trying to focus on what we’ve got going on in this building.”
For Allen, that means worrying about leading his offense to a much-needed bounce back after being held to 236 total yards by the Baltimore Ravens defense and three-for-13 on third downs. But for Sean McDermott’s defense, it’s all about how to stop Nico Collins and Diggs himself.
Collins leads the NFL with 488 receiving yards, with second place coming in 98 yards beneath that mark (Malik Nabers). As for Diggs, he’s doing pretty decent as well alongside C.J. Stroud, recording 25 catches for 233 yards and two touchdowns through four weeks. The former Bill is graded as the 22nd best receiver this season by Pro Football Focus.