Texans QB C.J. Stroud raves about Stefon Diggs: ‘One of the best teammates I’ve ever had’

New England Patriots

Diggs will face his former team as the Patriots take on the Texans this week.

It didn’t take Stefon Diggs long to form a bond with Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud. He spent one season with the Texans and was unable to play for most of it after tearing his ACL eight games in.

With Houston coming to town for a divisional-round matchup on Sunday, Stroud was asked about his relationship with Diggs during a recent press conference.

“Stef is one of the best teammates I’ve ever had in my career, in my life,” Stroud said. “He’s been amazing to my life, not just on the field but off as well. I think he’s super teammate oriented. He wants to be around the guys. He wants to do stuff for the guys. He wants to be one of the captains in the room.”

Diggs has been a leader for this Patriots team with his on-field production and fiery pregame speeches. He helped popularize the “we all we got, we all we need” phrase that was part of a recent Patriots hype video.

“He’s brought that swag there and he’s got the guys rolling around him. He will always be a brother of mine, always be a friend, and I’m just excited to see his career when it has gone and for him to get paid like he did is dope to see.”

Diggs joined the Patriots on a three-year, $69 million deal in the offseason. He recorded his seventh 1,000 yard season in eight years. He led the Patriots with 85 catches on 102 targets and hauled in four touchdowns.

He is also facing assault and strangulation charges after being accused of hitting a personal chef during a dispute over pay. His arraignment, initially scheduled for January 23, has since been pushed back to February 13.

Texans coach DeMeco Ryans has been impressed by Diggs’s playmaking abilities.

“Stef has done a great job there in New England of making some plays for them, being very quarterback friendly which Stef has done his entire career,” Ryans said. “Running a lot of option choice routes and he’s very explosive after he catches the football. Another guy that we have to make sure we have eyes on and make sure we’re doing a great job of tackling and covering him really well.”

Diggs called the Texans an “all-around good a** football team.” The Texans have a pair of All-Pro edge rushers, along with cornerback Derek Stingley Jr., who is widely regarded as one of the best at his position.

Diggs experienced going against the Texans secondary in practice last season.

“They’ve got a knack for the ball from top to bottom, from the corners to the safeties, you know I’ve spent some time there myself,” Diggs said. “I wouldn’t say that I know them like the back of my hand, but they’re just aggressive. They play the ball when they see it. Just good DBs.”

Diggs said he hasn’t had any back and forth with his Houston teammates this week about the upcoming divisional-round matchup at Gillette Stadium.

But, he did mention a pair of names when asked about who he keeps in touch with.

“Tank [Dell], C.J. [Stroud], them my dogs,” Diggs said.

Khari A. Thompson

Sports Reporter

Khari Thompson covers professional sports for Boston.com. Before joining the team in 2022, Khari covered college football for The Clarion Ledger in Jackson, Miss.