Josh Allen lost another one of his offensive weapons after Gabe Davis’s departure, as Stefon Diggs is on his way to the Texans. While the Bills did sign two new receivers in free agency, to offset the loss of Davis, a Diggs-sized hole will be difficult to fill. Tom Brady eerily predicted two years ago that someone would leave Allen just like many legendary receivers left their respective QBs and broke successful partnerships.
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The X (formerly Twitter) account ML Football posted an old clip from Brady’s days with Tampa Bay. In the video, the 7-time Super Bowl winner was golfing with other QBs, which included Aaron Rodgers, Patrick Mahomes, and Josh Allen. Tom bragged about having a dependable receiver in Mike Evans, while cheekily taking a dig at others. He stated that someone would eventually leave Josh like how Davante Adams left A-Rod, and Tyreek Hill left Mahomes. Bardy said,
” I got my boy Mike ready to catch. I didn’t even know who caught Aaron’s, Davante left him, Tyreek left you Patrick and Josh don’t worry someone will leave you too.”
Diggs joined the Bills four seasons ago from the Vikings and instantly hit the ground running. When Buffalo let go of Gabe Davis, many thought they would draft or sign someone in free agency to pair him with Diggs. So the news of him leaving is surprising as Josh Allen is now left with a depleted receiving core. Even though Stefon complained throughout the last season for not getting enough receptions, his trade might sting a bit more to Allen, as Diggs despite his struggles last season, passed the 1000-yard mark again for the fourth successive year. During his time with the Bills, Stefon made 4 Pro Bowls and led the NFL in receptions with 445.
Adams left Green Bay in 2022 and during that season Rodgers threw for less than 4000 yards for the first time in 4 seasons. Even though Brady won an MVP when Randy Moss left New England in 2010, he failed to cross the 4000-yard mark during that season. AJ Green made Andy Dalton look like a Pro Bowl QB. While Stafford has continually thrown for over 4k yards during his career, his most productive seasons came from 2011 to 2013, throwing for over 4500 yards, and it coincided with the best years of Calvin Megatron Johnson.
While many QBs have been exposed after the departure of their star receiver, Josh Allen can take inspiration from Brady and Mahomes on how to get the job done even without a star receiver.
Where Does Josh Allen Go After Stefon Diggs Exit?
Allen has always done more with less, and the Bills have continuously challenged the Chiefs in the AFC, partly because of their shot-caller ability to elevate his gameplay. He has continuously thrown for 4000 yards and has never been afraid to use his rushing ability to get the job done. However, his story in the NFL has been about near misses and without a great receiver, he might never come close to challenging the likes of Mahomes, Burrow, and Lamar.
While many QBs dropped off after their star receiver left, that hasn’t always been the case with QBs like Brady and Mahomes, who have managed to win Super Bowls even without 1000-yard wideouts. Even before the Diggs trade, the Bills had signed two new experienced receivers- Curtis Samuel and Mack Hollins.
Samuel, a free agent from the Commanders put up numbers similar to Davis, even without having Allen as his QB. Hollins had a below-par season in Atlanta, partially because of a lack of starts and lack of stability in the QB position. He however has the potential to put up better numbers with Josh. As per the Buffalo Bills website, they are now left with Mack Hollins, Curtis Samuel, Khalil Shakir, and Justin Shorter in the active squad to carry the workload.
The Bills have the 28th pick in the draft and could potentially draft a new WR1. As per CBS Sports, the upcoming draft class is abundant in wideouts and even with trading up, they can draft someone like Adonai Mitchell, a young 6’4 receiver from Texas with the potential to develop into a star WR. Mahomes managed to win consecutive Super Bowls even without Tyreek, changing his gameplay to get the best out of the receivers he had.
Like the Chiefs, Buffalo can draft a receiver like Rashee Rice and with the rest of the wideouts, they can still challenge for the playoffs. A good QB requires great offensive weapons around him, but a great QB knows how to make players around great. The next season will be a challenging one and Allen will finally have a chance to prove if he is the guy everyone raves about.
