Brandon Beane and Stefon Diggs (Photos via Getty Images)

Buffalo Bills general manager Brandon Beane offered a surprise reason behind the team’s decision to trade All-Pro wide receiver Stefon Diggs to the Houston Texans earlier this offseason.

Last month, the Bills traded Stefon Diggs, along with two late-round picks, to the Texans in exchange for a 2025 second-round draft choice. Diggs then agreed to a reworked deal with Houston that will make him a free agent after the 2024 season.

There had been growing speculation that Diggs was unhappy in Buffalo, and that his antics were becoming too much for the team. But during his appearance on “The Athletic Football Show”, Beane offered a completely different reason behind the decision to trade his Pro Bowl wideout.

Beane cited the salary cap as the main factor behind the trade, noting that Buffalo didn’t want to have too much money tied up into one player:

“A player of his caliber, you weigh a lot of things in those situations. But ultimately, we just talked about the cap. I don’t need to go through all the reasons why we decided to go ahead and do that. I would say, from a cap standpoint, we decided just to go ahead and eat it now.

We think we can compete and do what we need to do by eating it now. And not next year. Because if we didn’t, if we tried to come up with some way to split it up too many different ways, then now it’s just like that albatross hanging on your neck all year. You look at your cap and you’re going, Look how much money we still have dead.”

In trading Stefon Diggs, the Bills took on a massive $31.096 dead money hit for 2024. But his old deal with Buffalo was set to run through 2027, so the trade helps their cap situation in the long term.

Over his four seasons in Buffalo, Diggs compiled 445 receptions for 5,372 yards and 37 touchdowns. He exceeded the 100-catch and 1,100-yard marks every year, helping Buffalo to four straight AFC East division crowns.

Stefon Diggs Trade Was Best For All Parties

Stefon Diggs didn’t appear to be all that keen on staying in Buffalo long-term, and the Bills had to decide if he was in or out long-term. On top of that, quarterback Josh Allen became overly reliant on Diggs in the passing game, so a trade just made too much sense for everyone involved.

Buffalo was able to reshape their receiving room following the Diggs trade. The new faces include Curtis Samuel, rookie Keon Coleman and two-time Super Bowl champion Marques Valdes-Scantling.

Diggs, meanwhile, gets the chance to shine on an up-and-coming Texans team led by superstar quarterback CJ Stroud. If he fares well there, Diggs might play himself towards a contract extension.