Patriots say they will handle video of receiver WR Diggs internally
By JIMMY GOLEN
AP Sports Writer
FOXBOROUGH, Mass.
(AP) — New England Patriots coach Mike Vrabel said Wednesday that he is aware of a video that showed receiver Stefon Diggs passing a bag of pink crystals to women on a boat. Vrabel declined to comment on whether he has spoken to Diggs about it.
“Any conversations that I’ve had with Stefon will remain between him, I and the club,” Vrabel said before an optional practice that Diggs did not attend.
“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.”
An NFL spokesman said the league would not comment. Diggs’ agents did not immediately respond to a text from The Associated Press requesting comment.
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.
Other videos from what appears to be the same boat trip show a larger crowd that includes Cardi B, the Grammywinning 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.
Cardi B, who is known for hits such as “Bodak Yellow,” “I Like It” and “WAP,” filed for divorce from the rapper Offset last year. Diggs, 31, signed with the Patriots this offseason as a free agent, getting a three-year, $69 million deal that guarantees him $26 million. The four-time Pro Bowl selection posted six straight 1,000-yard receiving seasons for the Vikings and Bills before he was traded from Buffalo to Houston last spring.
He had 47 catches for 496 yards and three touchdowns in eight games for the Texans before he tore the ACL in his right knee in October.
If healthy, he is expected to be a top target for second-year quarterback Drake Maye as Vrabel, in his first year coaching the team he played on for eight of his 14 NFL seasons, tries to improve on back-to-back four-win finishes under Bill Belichick and Jerod Mayo.
