Just as Buffalo Bills fans were starting to settle in and feel that slight hint of confidence that the Seattle Seahawks would do the unthinkable and shut out the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LX, former Bills receiver Stefon Diggs was involved in the moment that nearly changed the game’s fate.
The Patriots were shut out for the first 46:33 minutes of the game, but found their way into the end zone early in the fourth quarter, hoping to spark what they thought might be an eventual comeback win. Two plays before that, Diggs was involved in a scuffle that seemed to give the Patriots an energy burst.
Diggs was knocked to the ground on the sidelines, after and well away from the play, and caught a punch from cornerback Josh Jobe. The officials didn’t throw a flag, and Jobe’s punch went unpunished. At least, until Maye hooked up with another former Bills wideout, Mack Hollins, caught a 35-yard touchdown pass to put up the first points of the game for New England.
Fortunately for Bills Mafia, the Patriots’ latest Super Bowl comeback attempts were thwarted, as Julian Love picked off a Maye pass deep over the middle of the field on New England’s next drive. Seattle scored a field goal in response, then picked up a game-sealing strip-sack returned for a touchdown.
Bills Mafia breathe sigh of relief as Stefon Diggs, Patriots come up short in Super Bowl LX
Bills fans would have been content enough with foreknowledge that the Patriots would lose Super Bowl LX. The fact that New England was largely embarrassed on the world’s stage was a satisfying concession, as was often the word of the night early on.
Still, the thought of Diggs or Hollins playing some massive role in a Patriots’ win was no doubt scratching in the back of some Bills fans’ minds. For a moment there early in the fourth quarter, it looked like they might have given their team some juice at just the right time.
Outside of that brief series of plays, though, neither player was particularly impactful, as the Seahawks smothered Maye in the pocket all night. Hollins had three receptions for 43 yards outside the touchdown reception, despite seeing a team-leading eight total targets. As for Diggs, he saw just three targets, catching each for 37 yards.
NBC color commentator Chris Collinsworth even commented on Diggs’ misuse following his second and final reception late in the fourth, saying he wouldn’t have believed if someone told him Diggs wouldn’t be more impactful against Seattle’s zone coverages.
Nonetheless, Diggs and Hollins helped New England from being embarrassed more than they could have been. Without that series of plays, the Patriots would have been the first team in Super Bowl history to be shut out, and that’s the only way Super Bowl LX could have ended any sweeter for Bills Mafia, at least, as long as New England had to be there.