Stefon Diggs had an instant connection with Drake Maye on Day 1 of Patriots training camp
Just nine months removed from his injury, the 31-year-old Diggs was cleared to fully participate in training camp. He ended up sitting out the final two team periods of the first day of practice, but when he was on the field, Diggs' impact on the offense was clear.
He showed an instant connection with his young QB by hauling in Maye's first pass of the day on a slant route. The reception drew a huge cheer from the fans in the stands in Foxboro.
Maye connected with Diggs later in the session when he hit the receiver in the flat when the QB's deep option was covered. After the practice, the second-year quarterback gushed about having a four-time Pro Bowler in his offensive arsenal.
"He made some plays out here today, it's awesome getting to throw to a player like that," said Maye, who connected on eight of his nine attempts on Wednesday. "Even when you feel like he's not open, he's going to go make a play for you. Tight coverage, he's a strong receiver who's going to make plays."
Diggs even showed off some incredible leg work before practice, when he had to chase down the puppy he was bringing onto the field as part of a special Pet Adoption Day in Foxboro. He didn't look limited at all during the retrieval process.
While he made some catches and moved well, Diggs didn't want to overreact after just one practice, especially considering nobody is wearing pads or laying any licks at the moment. He's still working hard to build up his relationship with Maye, a process began in voluntary workouts and continued recently at a three-day workout Maye put together in North Carolina.
While Diggs said a lot of people focus on timing between a QB and a receiver, he believes it's much more important the two trust each other.
"You want to be around a guy that you can trust," said Diggs. "He's a young quarterback. I believe in him and I think he's going to have a lot of success in this league. Breathing confidence into him is very important when they're young, and just talking through a lot of this stuff."
Diggs has worked with the likes of Josh Allen and C.J. Stroud over his nine NFL seasons. While making plays like a Pro Bowler will help Maye get to the next level, Diggs believes his experience and knowledge can help elevate Maye's game even more.
"You know, I've been around the league for a while now. I've got a little bit of experience. Every situation is different. You kind of want to go in with the right mindset -- brick-by-brick -- when you're building with a quarterback," he said.
Maye already has a lot of trust in Diggs because of the resume he brought to New England. But the 22-year-old passer is aware he's got to prove himself to Diggs and other veterans on the roster.
"I think there's certain players that have trust right when they come in. Garrett Bradbury and Big Mo (Morgan Moses) up front. Guys like that have been in this league and played a bunch of starts. Mack Hollins, Hunter Henry, those guys, you trust," he said. "Trust is basically, it's me kind of earning my trust with them. It's me really kind of earning their trust. And me kind of making them feel like they can trust that guy back there. I think those guys already have it built in with what they've done this league."
Recovery from surgery for an ACL tear is usually a 9-12 month ordeal, and it takes even more time for an athlete to get back up to speed. That doesn't appear to be the case with Diggs.
Diggs loves his job, so he put in some serious work to get back to the field so quickly.
"I wanted to get back as fast as I could and was super serious about my rehab process. I love football, and if you love football you put that time in," he said. "Getting back to football makes me extremely happy."
That being said, he wasn't completely happy with everything that went down on the field Wednesday. He'll work hard to correct what went wrong, and said he's still learning all the details of the playbook. He doesn't want to put any expectations on himself for the upcoming season at the moment, outside of earning the trust of his teammates and being a leader for the Patriots.
He also made it clear his knee injury is in the past.
"I feel like the worst has already happened. I hurt my knee already. I went through that already. So, as far as taking those mental jumps, I took those in my rehab process," said Diggs. "I took it serious, that if something's going to happen, it's going to happen right now and not when I get back to playing football. So, I'm not too concerned with the what ifs."
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