Stefon Diggs to be free agent after Patriots release

Jack McKessy, USA TODAY Wed, March 4, 2026 at 9:05 PM UTC

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Stefon Diggs to be free agent after Patriots release

Add another veteran wide receiver to the list of pending NFL free agents.

The New England Patriots informed wide receiver Stefon Diggs that they will release him after the start of the new league year, which is set for March 11.

Diggs, 32, signed a three-year, $63.5 million contract with New England in free agency last offseason. He will end his Patriots tenure after playing one year on that contract.

"THANK YOU for a hell of a year," Diggs wrote in an Instagram story. "We family forever (heart emoji)."

During the 2025 season, Diggs' 11th season in the NFL, he caught 85 passes for 1,013 yards and four touchdowns. His receptions and yardage total, along with his 104 targets, led all Patriots pass-catchers this season.

The Maryland product will have a chance to join a fourth team in four seasons when he becomes a free agent next week after spending 2023 with the Buffalo Bills, 2024 with the Houston Texans and 2025 with New England.

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1 / 0NFL mock draft: First-round projection after Trent McDuffie trade1. Las Vegas Raiders – Fernando Mendoza, QB, IndianaMike Vrabel recently discussed Stefon Diggs' future with the Patriots

At the NFL combine last week, Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel praised Diggs for his contributions on the field as well as his leadership.

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"He worked extremely hard in the time that he was rehabbing from the knee," Vrabel said, referring to Diggs' recovery from the torn ACL he suffered in 2024. "I think he was just a really good presence each and every week."

The Pats' head coach said at the time that he and other members of New England's front office were still evaluating Diggs' future, including how Diggs' legal troubles factored into the decision.

The veteran wide receiver is facing strangulation and assault allegations after a physical altercation with his personal chef in December last year. Diggs was arraigned on Feb. 13, days after the Patriots' loss in Super Bowl 60, and pleaded not guilty to felony strangulation or suffocation and misdemeanor assault and battery.

Vrabel said at the NFL combine that Diggs "or anybody else that has something, have done exactly what they're supposed to do, been where they're supposed to be, communicated with the court when they're supposed to communicate with them. So we're going to let all that take care of itself, and then we'll have to see what the judgments are in those particular cases."

Diggs is due for another pre-trial hearing on April 1.

Stefon Diggs stats

2025:

Games (starts): 17 (17)

Receptions: 85

Receiving yards: 1,013

Yards per reception: 11.9

Touchdowns: 4

Career:

Games (starts): 161 (153)

Receptions: 942

Receiving yards: 11,504

Yards per reception: 12.2

Touchdowns: 74

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Patriots to release star WR Stefon Diggs

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