The New England Patriots found their young quarterback Drake Maye an elite veteran wide receiver in Stefon Diggs. But along with his age and injury history, Diggs’ personality is among the most common concerns when assessing his fit in Foxboro.

Diggs, 31 and recovering from a torn ACL, is one of the NFL’s most outspoken wideouts whose personality can rub some people the wrong way. But with a glaring lack of offensive playmakers, the Patriots were willing to take on the risk that came with signing the four-time Pro Bowler to a three-year contract.

Diggs will lead a wide receiver group that was a tremendous disappointment in 2024. While some worry that his personality be an issue for Maye, head coach Mike Vrabel, and the rest of the team, Tom E. Curran and Phil Perry believe it could greatly benefit the receiving corps in 2025.

They explained why on the latest episode of the Patriots Talk Podcast.

🔊 Patriots Talk Podcast: Drake Maye’s leadership and Stefon Diggs’ attitude are exactly what the Patriots NEED in 2025 | Listen & Subscribe | Watch on YouTube

“Earlier in the week, I was speaking to an offensive coach. It was mentioned that the Patriots offense right now in the wide receiver room, basically, you can look at Diggs, (Kendrick) Bourne, (DeMario) Douglas, (Mack) Hollins, and (Kyle) Williams. And then after that, the other three: Javon Baker, Ja’Lynn Polk, and Kayshon Boutte, they’re all kind of playing for their jobs,” Curran said.

“It was pointed out to me that Stefon Diggs might have been a pain in the ass on the sidelines to quarterbacks, and he might have been a little bit of a prima donna, and he might be hard to deal with. But nobody practices harder than he does, nobody is more cutthroat in terms of competition during games or in practice, and nobody is less reluctant than Stefon Diggs to say something if he doesn’t think performance is up to what it should be.

“So I think it’ll be very interesting for those three players, because they’re in a sink or swim situation. … They’re either gonna rise with the tide that Diggs will bring with him, or they’ll drown in it.”

Perry believes Diggs’ presence will bring a much more noticeable sense of urgency to the Patriots’ locker room.

“The roster was what it was, we would acknowledge that, but there just wasn’t much urgency,” Perry said. “Throughout the organization for years now there hasn’t been enough urgency, in my opinion. This is a guy who’s toward the tail end of his career, who is most of the most intense competitors that the league has seen, certainly at his position, in a long time. So that’s the kind of jolt I think that could really benefit them.”

Also in the episode: