Disgruntled Diggs wants out of Minnesota
EAGAN, MINN. >> The Minnesota Vikings have not committed to using disgruntled wide receiver Stefon Diggs in their next game.
After practice on Friday, coach Mike Zimmer said simply, “We’ll see,” when asked if Diggs would play on Sunday against the Giants.
Diggs returned to the field with the Vikings on Thursday, after an absence on Wednesday that was labeled as “not injury related.” Zimmer has declined to comment on Diggs and his dissatisfaction with the direction of the team, but the coach said on Friday that Diggs has been punished, without specifying how or for what.
Zimmer indicated that his assessment of practice performance would determine whether Diggs plays, saying the coaching staff would have to “watch the tape.”
“I haven’t communicated anything,” Diggs said Thursday when asked whether he has formally requested to be traded. “The conversations I’ve had have only been about the team and trying to have success on the field.”
Diggs’ number of targets has decreased by 4% from where it was last year as the Vikings shift to a run-heavy attack. The receiver has caught 13 of his 19 targets for 209 yards and a touchdown. In the Vikings’ first four games of the 2018 season, Diggs had 44 targets, 27 catches and 311 yards.
Earlier in the week, beleaguered quarterback Kirk Cousins issued a public apology on his podcast to receiver Adam Thielen for missing him on a handful of wide-open throws in the Vikings’ 16-6 loss at Chicago. The quarterback also said he hopes to get more opportunities to both Thielen and Diggs going forward.
“I’ve been here for a while,” Diggs said. “I don’t feel like I don’t have a role. But I also feel like, given the situation and what’s going on, I’m just trying to the best of my ability to do my job. At the end of the day, all I can say is if I’m doing my job, I’m doing what’s asked. Whether it’s enough, it’s kind of on them. But given opportunities, I try to make the most of my opportunities.”