Former Buffalo Bills star Stefon Diggs is embroiled in controversy as he's moved to the rival New England Patriots ... and moved into potential NFL trouble.
New Patriots coach Mike Vrabel - who is trying to bring a no-nonsense vibe to the team - said Wednesday that the team is aware of a video that seems to show receiver Diggs - as the AP writes it "passing a bag of pink crystals to women on a boat. .... Diggs, who has been linked to hip-hop star Cardi B this offseason, is shown in a video on social media talking to three women on a boat before he produces a bag of pink crystals. It’s not clear what the pink substance was.''
“Any conversations that I’ve had with Stefon will remain between him, I and the club,” Vrabel said before a voluntary OTA that Diggs did not attend.
That, of course, is not how this works.
And now one Patriots insider is suggesting that Diggs in Boston might not work at all.
First, to Vrabel's assertion ...
The NFL has the right to launch an investigation. So do law enforcement officials. And fans devoted to their teams who are paying a player like Diggs on a three-year, $69 million deal that guarantees him $26 million?
We will argue that eventually, fans deserve answers, too.
For now?
“It’s something that we’re aware of,” Vrabel said. “Obviously, we want to make great decisions on and off the field. … The message will be the same for all our players, that we’re trying to make great decisions.”
Scott Zolak, the former NFL QB now of 98.5 The Sports Hub, believes it's a real possibility that New England might cut its losses here now ... and for reasons that go beyond the controversial boat video.
"I came to this show yesterday with the opinion -- not opinion, but the knowledge that (cutting Diggs) is on the table," Zolak said on Zolak & Bertrand. "That it is being thought of. And it's not just the boat. It's not just the boat. There are some other things that I've heard that put some things in question. Are you all-in here?''
The AP said an NFL spokesman said the league has so far declined to comment, and that Diggs’ agents did not immediately respond to a text from the AP requesting comment.
Per the AP: "Other videos from what appears to be the same boat trip show a larger crowd that includes Cardi B, the Grammy-winning rapper who was spotted leaving the Met Gala with Diggs earlier this month. They also sat together at a Boston Celtics-New York Knicks playoff game at Madison Square Garden.''
Diggs, 31, signed with the Patriots this year via free agency after one season with the Houston Texans, who acquired the four-time Pro Bowl selection a year ago in a trade with the Bills.
Diggs put up six consecutive 1,000-yard receiving seasons for the Vikings and then the Bills before the trade.
Last year, Diggs - who often wore his emotions on his sleeve as part of the Josh Allen-led Bills - he had 47 catches for 496 yards and three touchdowns in eight games for the Texans before a serious knee injury sustained in October.
And now? The Patriots just gave him $26 million guaranteed ... and might be regretting that decision.