There’s a version of this story where Stefon Diggs plays in the Super Bowl, delivers a legendary performance, and we all quietly agree to deal with the felony strangulation charges later. That’s not what happened.
What happened is that a Massachusetts judge granted a defense request to move Diggs’ January 23 arraignment to February 13 — five days after Super Bowl LX — so the New England Patriots wide receiver could suit up for the biggest game of his career. His lawyer cited a “previously-scheduled professional commitment.” The league didn’t object. The team didn’t sit him. The system made room.
Courts grant scheduling accommodations all the time. What makes this one stick is the math: a felony strangulation charge on one side, a football game on the other, and everyone agreed which one could wait.
Diggs caught three passes for 37 yards. The Patriots lost 29-13. It wasn’t close.
And on Friday morning, Diggs walked into Dedham District Court, pleaded not guilty to felony strangulation and misdemeanor assault, and walked out. The whole thing took less than three minutes. He didn’t say a word to reporters.
The Accusation No One Wanted to Talk About Before Kickoff
Stefon Diggs pleads not guilty to assaulting his female private chef.
Diggs lost the Super Bowl, split from Cardi B, and now has to deal with this legal situation less than a week after the Super Bowl.
pic.twitter.com/sjm5Oe17ca— FearBuck (@FearedBuck) February 13, 2026
According to court records, Diggs’ personal chef went to Dedham police on December 16 to report an incident from two weeks earlier. She told officers that on December 2, she and Diggs got into an argument about money — specifically, wages she says he owed her. The initial agreement called for weekly pay, but she told police she’d been getting paid monthly instead and was still owed at least a month’s wages.
She said he came into her unlocked bedroom, smacked her across the face, and tried to choke her with the crook of his elbow around her neck. She told police she couldn’t breathe.
This is a man earning $63.5 million over three years. The dispute was over a pay schedule.
When the charges went public in late December, the Patriots released a statement: “We support Stefon.” That was the full extent of the organization’s commentary on their wide receiver facing a felony strangulation charge.
Three Minutes and Out
Stefon Diggs has arrived to Dedham District Court ahead of his hearing today on charges of felony strangulation or suffocation and misdemeanor assault and battery. @boston25 pic.twitter.com/VsjEaRGd9s
— Ryan Breslin (@ryanjbreslin) February 13, 2026
Friday’s arraignment was almost aggressively uneventful. Diggs appeared, pleaded not guilty, and was released on personal recognizance — no bail. He was ordered to stay away from the alleged victim. His next court date is April 1.
His attorney, Mitchell Schuster, told reporters outside the courthouse that his client is “completely innocent of these false allegations” and that “after the facts and evidence are reviewed in this case, he will be completely exonerated.”
What his attorney didn’t address is why Diggs showed up with new representation at all. Both of his previous lawyers withdrew from the case the day before the arraignment. Neither has said why.
How This Probably Ends
Legal analyst Jennifer Roman told WBZ-TV that the prosecution is already on shaky ground. The chef waited two weeks to report the incident, which Roman says undercuts her credibility. Roman went further, suggesting that Diggs’ legal team could pursue a cash settlement in exchange for the alleged victim declining to cooperate with prosecutors.
If that sounds familiar, it should. High-profile cases built on delayed reporting and a single accuser’s testimony have a way of ending not with a verdict, but with a transaction — the kind of quiet resolution that never makes the front page the way the charges did.
What does make the front page, apparently, is the Patriots’ growing roster of legal problems. Defensive tackle Christian Barmore is set for his own arraignment on March 9 on a misdemeanor domestic assault charge — accused of throwing the mother of his child to the floor during an argument. Two players on the same team, both accused of violence against women, arraignments a month apart. The organization’s public response to both has been the same flavor of silence.
What Comes Next
Stephon Diggs spinning the ball after a catch down 22 with less than 3 minutes left.
What are you doing?
— NFL Numbers Guy (@NFLNumbersGuy) February 9, 2026
Diggs played every game for the Patriots this season — all 21, including playoffs. He led the team in the regular season with 85 catches for 1,013 yards, and added 14 more receptions across three postseason games. After the Super Bowl loss, a reporter asked about his future with the team. His answer: “Unless they opt out of the contract, I anticipate being here.”
No mention of the charges. No mention of the court date that was five days away. Just business.
His next hearing is April 1. If Roman’s read is right, there may not be many after that. A check gets written, cooperation dries up, and the whole thing folds into the kind of silence that money buys. These things usually resolve quietly, when you can afford for them to.
