After trading away Quandre Diggs to the Seahawks for next to nothing, the Detroit Lions are forced to watch the young safety flourish in Seattle.
With their season crumbling under the weight of a three-game losing streak after Week Seven combined with the loss of starting running back Kerryon Johnson to a knee injury, fans of the Detroit Lions figured the team would make some changes to help them find success during the second half of the season.
Instead, the Lions brass elected to make a confusing trade, sending starting safety Quandre Diggs and a 2021 seventh-round pick to the Seattle Seahawks for fifth-rounder in 2020. Although Diggs had been underperforming though the first half of the season, he was coming off a career-year where he posted 78 total tackles, eight pass defends, and three interceptions.
Adding to the mystery of the move was the fact the Lions had just signed the 26-year old Diggs to a three-year, $20.4 million extension the previous year. Out of the blue, it seemed head coach Matt Patricia and general manager Bob Quinn gave up on the fifth-year defender and team captain, shipping him off for pennies on the dollar at the cost of their own team chemistry and roster depth.
When Lions starting safety Tracy Walker was injured in the following game against the New York Giants, the trade was met with even more ire from fans. Diggs himself would later reveal he believed the move was made by the Lions in an attempt to control the voices in their locker room.
But the reality was the trade was a turning point for the Lions. Afterward, Detroit’s season would spiral out of control, losing six of their last seven games after the transaction. While Diggs himself has found success in Seattle.
Once Diggs recovered from a hamstring injury, he took the field for the Seahawks, starting in their last four games. He’s recorded 13 total tackles, three pass defends, three interceptions, a forced fumble, and one defensive touchdown in that short span.
Diggs is coming off a career-performance for Seattle in Week 14. Against the Los Angeles Rams, the former Lion posted a stat-line of five tackles, two pass defends, and two interceptions including a 55-yard pick-six that helped to get the Seahawks back into the game early in the third quarter down 21-3.
With a record of 10-3, the Seahawks are one of the top teams in the NFC and all but assured a playoff spot. While the 3-9-1 Lions are already out of postseason contention and seemingly tanking the rest of their season in the hopes of landing a better position in next year’s draft.
The fact Detroit Lions fans have to watch Quandre Diggs have success in Seattle while their team continues to wallow in mediocrity is a huge knock against the current regime in the Motor City. Namely head coach Matt Patricia and general manager Bob Quinn. Yet, both men could return to Detroit in 2020 in the hopes their process pans out in Year Three, but I seriously doubt any fan is holding their breath.