One of the first moves the Packers made this offseason was releasing cornerback Trevon Diggs from the roster. After claiming him off waivers from the Cowboys back on December 31st, he appeared in two games post-pickup—the season finale against the Minnesota Vikings and the wild card playoff game against the Bears. A few days after that loss to the Bears, he was released. Although he didn’t play much in his cameo with the Packers, the release was more about his current contract than whether or not he could be impactful on the field. They were never going to keep him on his remaining contract, and cutting him freed up $15 million in much-needed cap space. But now that the market’s top options have signed elsewhere and depth is still needed, would it be smart for the Packers to take another chance on Diggs on a smaller deal?
It’s hard to tell what the team thought of his brief performance. He played only 34 snaps in those two games—33 against the Vikings in a meaningless season finale, and then only one in the wild card game. He seemed to hold up well enough against the Vikings and even snuck his nose in to make a few nice tackles. Between his time with the Cowboys and the Packers last year, Diggs gave up 18 completions on 24 targets for 288 receiving yards and four touchdowns. After dealing with numerous injuries since the start of the 2023 season, it was thought a change of scenery might do him some good. But with such a small sample size, it is tough to say what level of play he might be able to bring if he were to come back to Green Bay for a whole season.
When thinking of re-signing Diggs, the first question is going to be contract. The dollars and cents of it all—if the two sides are not even in the same zip code numbers-wise—then this could all be a moot point. What type of deal is someone like Diggs, who at age 27 is still young in NFL terms? He is in his prime money-making age and might hold off until he gets an offer he feels he is worth. If he is willing to take what the market is projecting his worth to be, it might make some sense. Spotrac is estimating his next contract to be a one-year, $7.5 million deal. If the Packers can get the 2022–2023 version of Diggs, that would be an absolute steal. Adding a player like that—who at one point was one of the best ballhawks in the league—to a defensive backfield that struggled to take the ball away a year ago might help take them to another level.
The second question is going to be fit. There is no doubt that cornerback is still a need for this team. The signing of Benjamin St-Juste is a nice addition, but he projects to be more of a part-time defender and a special teams ace, like he was last year in Los Angeles. It could be risky for them to bank on the only notable addition to the group being St-Juste, especially after releasing Nate Hobbs shortly after. It doesn’t add any additional quality bodies to the unit—just replacing a part-timer with another part-timer. The more quality players they can add to challenge and push Carrington Valentine and Keisean Nixon for snaps, the better.
Putting a proven ballhawk like Diggs into Gannon’s system could be appealing. If Gannon truly goes back to his roots and deploys a system featuring split-safety shells, quarters coverage, and zone principles that allow corners to keep plays in front of them and their eyes on the quarterback, that will play right into his strengths. Keeping him from having to turn and run with top receivers, and instead allowing him to play a more aggressive, boom-or-bust style, would be a nice addition to the corner room. His 20 career interceptions would be the most in the secondary, even if he is 5 years removed from his league leading 11 interception season.
If the Packers can get Diggs on a reasonable deal, then it would definitely be worth considering. If they can structure it to be as team-friendly as possible as a way to get him into camp and see how he fits, then even better. It could be a low-cost option to add more talent and depth to a position unit that has underwhelmed for a few seasons in a row. If the team strikes out on adding a corner high in the draft, then it’s even more reason to consider it. For what it’s worth, Diggs was pictured in Packers gear on Wednesday training alongside Micah Parsons. Maybe he knows something we don’t and a deal is already in the works. Either way the Packers need to add some additional depth and if they strike out in the draft, brining back Diggs might not be a bad way to go.