Stefon Diggs explains escaping medical tent earlier than beating Ravens
New England Patriots
“I used to be blacking out, bro.”
Stefon Diggs spent a majority of Sunday’s primetime win in opposition to the Ravens shredding aside Baltimore’s secondary.
However for a portion of the primary quarter, the 32-year-old Patriots vast receiver was sequestered in New England’s blue medical expertise alongside the sideline for testing.
At first, it regarded as if Diggs was due for a routine check-up after combating by contact and showing to harm his shoulder off a 25-yard pickup by the air.
However after lacking a while within the tent to endure testing, NBC’s Melissa Starks famous on the Sunday Evening Soccer broadcast that Diggs “finally escaped out the again” of the tent earlier than getting cleared for sport motion.
Talking after New England’s 28-24 win, Diggs defined his early exit from the tent in a dialog with Doug Kyed of the Boston Herald.
“I used to be blacking out, bro,” Diggs instructed Kyed. “They have been holding me within the tent. They stated I had a concussion, however they by no means touched my head, I by no means laid on the bottom. They monitored me for a concussion. I stated, ‘I by no means had a concussion.’ I used to be touching my shoulder, so how y’all say I had a concussion? I used to be combating with them to get again on the market.
“It was the primary drive. I’m wired to get again on the market to make performs for my crew. We had somewhat stall, so I used to be like, ‘Rattling, I’m imagined to be on the market.’ I really feel like I let the crew down if I’m not on the market. I apologized to them afterwards, however you possibly can’t cease me from being out on the sphere.”
No matter ailment Diggs was coping with off that first catch didn’t hinder him out on the sphere.
Although Diggs didn’t reel in a landing, he performed a vital half in New England’s comeback victory — making 9 catches for 138 yards within the win.
A number of of his catches helped New England transfer the chains throughout essential third and fourth-down conditions.
Simply two performs earlier than Rhamondre Stevenson gave New England the lead for good with a 21-yard landing run with 2:15 left in regulation, it was Diggs who stored New England’s rally alive — snagging a dangerous throw from Drake Maye on 4th-and-2 and taking it 21 yards down the sphere.
“Folks do not know what you realize he means to this crew,” Maye stated postgame. “He’s a frontrunner. He’s been nice within the locker room. He needs the soccer in his hand … he simply retains exhibiting up and making performs, and he’s doing it at a extremely excessive stage. He’s simply bouncing again and vocal, and he’s superior to play with.”
Sunday marked the third time this season that Diggs has surpassed triple digits in receiving yards this season. However the former All-Professional wideout had largely gone settle down the stretch previous to this breakout efficiency on primetime TV.
Over his final three video games previous to Sunday’s showdown in Baltimore, Diggs had solely reeled in eight mixed catches for simply 72 whole yards earlier than elevating a banged-up wideout corps on Sunday Evening Soccer.
“I’ve been within the league a short while now, I form of perceive what’s happening, and I’ve some good potential,” Diggs stated throughout NBC’s postgame protection. “I bought some expertise that God’s given me. I’m extraordinarily blessed, however I work at it. I nurture that expertise. I feel it’s necessary that you simply grind exhausting, you set the time in, and it’s a mirrored image of your teammates, too.
“I really feel like I’m solely accountable as a result of I do know my guys are watching me and like, Who’re you when no one’s round? Are you persevering with to work exhausting? You taking good care of your physique? So in these conditions, I adore it. I need the ball.”
Whereas Diggs has emerged as New England’s high wideout this 12 months, the veteran credited Mike Vrabel for the function he’s performed in settling the tradition for a Patriots crew now again within the postseason for the primary time since 2021.
“I actually simply give all of the credit score to the crew,” Diggs stated on NBC. “I really feel like Vrabes is doing one thing actually particular so far as with the id and what [we’re] constructed off of and the consistency. We run sprints each Wednesday. As an older participant, you want, ‘man, do I really feel like operating sprints?’ But it surely’s not simply the sprints. It’s the mentality.
“Like while you go into video games like this and also you’re drained, and also you’ve bought leaders like Mack Hollins, even Drake Maye as a younger quarterback, being poised and being that constructive drive behind him, I really feel like there’s a whole lot of carry over. That stuff issues to me. I really feel like being a frontrunner is simply a part of being me, they usually let me be me.”
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