Vikings GM on Stefon Diggs Trade: MIN Had 'No Intention' to Deal WR in February

Minnesota Vikings general manager Rick Spielman said Tuesday that the decision to trade wide receiver Stefon Diggs to the Buffalo Bills this offseason was not premeditated. 

According to ESPN's Courtney Cronin, Spielman backed up what he stated at the NFL Scouting Combine in February about having no plans to trade Diggs but noted that Buffalo's offer was too good to pass up:

"We had no intention of trading Diggs at the combine. He was a great player for us. He was great in the community. But then there was an opportunity, a business opportunity, that came up as this evolved that we felt was both good for Stefon and was for us, and we decided to go ahead and make the trade, but we'll always appreciate everything that Stefon has done for us here in Minnesota and wish him nothing but the best."

Despite the fact that Diggs is just 26 and coming off the two best years of his career, Minnesota sent him and a 2020 seventh-round pick to the Bills for first-, fifth- and sixth-round picks in 2020 and a 2021 fourth-round pick to complete the trade last month.

Diggs was a fifth-rounder of the 2015 NFL draft, and he averaged 824 yards and five touchdowns per year over his first three seasons. He took a big leap into No. 1 wideout territory in 2018, however.

Diggs set career highs across the board that season with 102 receptions for 1,021 yards and nine touchdowns, forming one of the NFL's best wide receiver combinations with Adam Thielen.

Thielen missed significant time last season due to injury, which left Diggs as the clear No. 1 option for quarterback Kirk Cousins. While Diggs' receptions dropped to 63 and his touchdowns fell to six, he set a new career high with 1,130 yards on the back of a career-best 17.9 yards per reception average.

Diggs established himself as one of the NFL's premier deep threats, which is precisely what the Bills needed after quarterback Josh Allen struggled to make plays down the field in the passing game last season.

Since Buffalo likely would have strongly considered taking a wide receiver with the No. 22 overall pick in the 2020 NFL draft, general manager Brandon Beane decided to pull the trigger on a deal that landed the Bills a legitimate No. 1 wideout.

Despite Spielman saying he didn't intend to trade Diggs, the deal came as little surprise since Diggs often dropped hints on social media that he was no longer happy in Minnesota.

Diggs' mood has seemingly changed significantly since the trade to Buffalo, as he has expressed excitement about playing alongside Allen and fellow wide receivers John Brown and Cole Beasley.

Spielman and the Vikings picked up several assets for a great player, but the trade left them with a massive void at wide receiver. Thielen can be the top guy when healthy, but the options beyond him are unproven with 2019 seventh-round pick Bisi Johnson and free-agent signing Tajae Sharpe standing out as the top complements.

Given the lack of weapons Cousins now has at wide receiver, it won't be surprising if Spielman uses one of his two first-round picks to select a wideout such as LSU's Justin Jefferson, Clemson's Tee Higgins, Arizona State's Brandon Aiyuk or Colorado's Laviska Shenault.