FOXBORO — Earlier than the Patriots beat the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday for his or her first playoff victory in seven years, Stefon Diggs gathered his teammates collectively to share a motivational message.
“Hey, be violent, man!” the veteran huge receiver mentioned, as captured by the Patriots’ in-house media crew. “Be good, however when unsure, crash the (expletive) out. It’s us vs. them, man. Ain’t no person like us. Ain’t no person imagine in us. I like us, man. Go lay in on the road to your brother, man.”
I LIKE US pic.twitter.com/nPdAQRLAIf
— New England Patriots (@Patriots) January 12, 2026
Following New England’s 16-3 victory at Gillette Stadium, Diggs was requested why he feels that no person likes or believes within the Patriots. After asking for a reporter’s opinion on the matter throughout a prolonged back-and-forth, he defined his rationale.
“I believe from my vantage level, clearly, we’ve acquired a distinct scope of issues,” Diggs mentioned. “However y’all within the media, y’all see each day. I don’t assume no person actually preferred us. No one believed in us. We had been a younger crew, we’ve acquired a younger quarterback, and all through the season, we simply grew. We simply grew, and we type of grew collectively. And as we’ve had this success, everyone’s been humbled, everyone’s been unselfish, and everyone simply desires to win.
“So why I mentioned it’s as a result of it’s the reality. No one likes us however us — and I really like us. I like us loads. I inform them each time, as we proceed to develop and turn out to be that crew that we imagine — (expletive) they’ll begin liking us finally.”
The Patriots went 14-3 and earned the No. 2 seed within the AFC beneath head coach Mike Vrabel, however they’ve confronted questions on their championship bona fides after taking part in one of many weakest schedules in NFL historical past. They handed their first postseason check on Sunday, dominating the Chargers defensively to offset a shakier displaying by their Drake Maye-led offense.
“I nonetheless don’t imagine we’ve performed our greatest ball,” mentioned Diggs, who caught two passes on 5 targets for 16 yards within the win. “Even myself included — I wish to be higher. However I really feel like the desire to win issues.”
