While some may feel that the Buffalo Bills are punting on this season, general manager Brandon Beane stressed that that is not the case despite trading four-time Pro Bowl Stefon Diggs to the Houston Texans on Wednesday. Diggs is the latest notable player to leave Buffalo this offseason, a list that also includes defensive backs Jordan Poyer, Tre'Davious White and Siran Neal, center Mitch Morse and wideout Gabe Davis.
During a press conference following the Diggs trade, Beane exuded confidence in his front office's ability to put together a competitive Bills roster between now and when the regular season kicks off. He is also confident he will find Diggs' replacement.
"Any time you make a move like this ... you're doing it because you're trying to win," Beane said. "This is by no means the Bills giving up or trying to take a step back or anything like that. Everything we do, we're trying to win. We're going to continue to do that."
Beane knows shipping away the team's star wideout wasn't a move the fanbase wanted to see.
"Was it easy? No. But if you make the best decision for the Bills going forward, that's all you can do, and trust that. And so this organization and our fan base needs to trust that we're going to trot out a damn good team come September. And that's our plan, and that's not changing."
Beane said that he doesn't currently know who will fill Diggs' role as Buffalo's new No. 1 wideout, and he knows that that void will ultimately be filled some time over the next several months. In the meantime, Beane talked up the players currently on Buffalo's offense, including quarterback Josh Allen, recently signed wideout Curtis Samuel, fellow receiver Khalil Shakir and tight ends Dalton Kincaid and Dawson Knox.
"I think we do have a lot of confidence in our offense," Beane said. "And listen, we don't play games until September. I would hope you know by now that I'm going to turn over every stone -- and our staff -- to continue to look to add depth and competition to all those rooms, so that when it's time to play, we have a team we're proud of that's going to give us a chance to win."
The Bills have several options when it comes to finding Diggs' replacement. One obvious option is during this month's NFL Draft. Following the news of Diggs' trade, three of our six CBS Sports draft experts have the Bills taking a receiver with the 28th overall pick. Look for Buffalo to draft multiple wideouts to help replace Diggs. And they'll have plenty of options in this year's class.
Regarding his quarterback, Beane (whether knowing it or not) dismissed a possible growing narrative that a lot of Allen's success over the past four years is because of Diggs, and not because of Allen's own personal growth and development.
"They've been a really good duo," Beane said of the two. 'I don't think Steph made an All-Pro before he got here, and make some Pro Bowls here, too. Josh ramped up as well, so I do think, when they were clicking, you could say they were probably up there with any quarterback-receiver [duo]."
Now the two will do their work without the other. Diggs will try to help C.J. Stroud build off his mega successful rookie season. Allen, meanwhile, will continue his quest to deliver Buffalo's first Super Bowl win. And if Beane can help it, there will be someone able to fill the void left by Diggs' departure.
"I mean, are we better today? Probably not," Beane said. "It's a work in progress, and we're going to continue to work on that. I just hope people know I'm competitive as hell, and I ain't giving in, we're going to work through this and continue to look and I'm confident in guys on the roster, and confident in the staff we have upstairs that helps me, that we'll continue to find pieces to add, and we'll be ready to roll when it comes time in September."
