MINNESOTA ALREADY DUG DIGGS BEFORE THAT CLUTCH CATCH
Third-year Vikings receiver is loved among fans and in the locker-room
It’s clear Stefon Diggs has always been a popular player in the Minnesota Vikings locker-room, even before he hooked up with Case Keenum on a play called Seven Heaven for what’s been dubbed the Minneapolis Miracle.
A new visitor to the team’s training facility saw examples of that popularity last week.
The first example was when the fresh-faced receiver was the subject of some sort of playful documentary hosted by veteran defensive end Brian Robison, while in the background Diggs nonchalantly walked back and forth to the shower wearing only a towel and a smile.
The second, when running back Latavius Murray was aching for the end of a scrum, spotted relief a few stalls away and told the media “get Diggs, get Diggs, get Diggs” to which Diggs replied “they got me, they got me, they got me yesterday,” prompting laughter from both players.
And again when Diggs walked across the room to receiver Jarius Wright and told him “we’re going upstairs NOW.” A reluctant Wright asked why. Diggs slowly but emphatically uttered two words: “Chicken wings.” Said Wright: “We’re going upstairs.”
And it was evident again on Monday, less than 24 hours after Diggs became the first player to score a fourth-quarter walkoff touchdown in NFL playoff history. Holding court in the Vikings’ room was practice roster receiver Cayleb Jones, the brother of Buffalo Bills receiver Zay Jones.
Why did the media want a guy that wasn’t even dressed for the NFC divisional round playoff ? Because Jones was the picture of euphoria when, so fired up while watching the 61-yard touchdown transpire, he sprinted from the bench, down the sidelines and straight into Diggs’ arms to kick off the wild end zone celebration.
“I saw Diggs come down with the ball, and I’m like, ‘He’s in bounds! He’s in bounds,’ and I just took off down the sideline,” Jones said. “I was so excited for him. It was the craziest thing I’ve ever been a part of.”
Jones shared intimate details of what happened when the rest of the Vikings arrived.
“I was pulling people off him,” he said. “I’ve been in a Hail Mary game before, and it’s scary underneath the pile. Nobody can hear you, you can’t breathe. So after five seconds, I was like, OK we’ve got to get off him. It was crazy.”
Yes, it’s pretty clear Diggs has always been a popular player with the Vikings, but it’s just as clear he has soared up the charts as one of the most popular players in franchise history.
Only 24 and a veteran of just three seasons, the receiver exorcised decades of Vikings’ demons in 10 seconds. One of the most improbable and thrilling finishes of any game in any sport was a turnaround of fate for a fan base that watched its team lose every one of its four Super Bowl appearances (1969, 1973, 1974, 1976), the heartbreak of missed field goals by Gary Anderson and Blair Walsh, and a crushing interception thrown by Brett Favre.
Despite being a fifth-round draft pick, Diggs has the potential to become one of the game’s best receivers. The speed, the hands, the elusiveness. And the work ethic.
“I think the thing I appreciate most about Diggs is just the way he approaches the game,” said receiver Adam Thielen. “He’s a guy that comes to practice and busts his tail. He outworks everybody, and I’m not just saying that because you guys are the media. He really does. He comes to work. And he pushes me. He’s a guy that’s probably pushed me more than anybody’s ever pushed me, just the way he practises and plays the game.
“I have a lot of love for that guy.”
The Diggs magic act on Sunday overshadowed gutsy performances by both quarterbacks. Poised to be the hero a day before his 39th birthday was Drew Brees, who threw three touchdown passes in the final 17 minutes against the NFL’s best defence.
“Felt pretty good about our odds of winning, once we were able to kick the field goal,” Brees said of the Wil Lutz 43-yarder that put the Saints in front with 25 seconds left. “Just unfortunate sequence of events there.
“This would have been one for the ages had we been able to pull it off.”
Then there was Keenum, who after making his first playoff start was asked to describe its end.
When the words weren’t coming easy, Keenum stopped, smiled and said: “I just threw it, man. And he just caught it. And he ran to the end zone.”
And as Diggs said, “the rest is history.”
“Viking fans were pretty excited about that one, as were we,” Thielen said of the Minneapolis Miracle, adding he has already watched it “hundreds” of times.
“And I have a feeling we’re going to be seeing that play for a long time.”