Quandre Diggs tells Penei Sewell to embrace the city: ‘I love that place’

Come home, Quandre.

Make no mistake about it: Quandre Diggs was run out of town by the previous Detroit Lions’ front office and coaching staff—but Diggs doesn’t appear to be holding a grudge towards Detroit. Well, the city, at least.

Then general manager Bob Quinn dealt Diggs and a seventh-round pick to the Seattle Seahawks in exchange for a 2019 fifth-round pick. A stunning move by most accounts, the trade ended up an eventual disaster for Detroit. Diggs took the move in stride, happy to be free of then-coach Matt Patricia’s thumb, and went on to play some of the best ball of his NFL career.

In 2020, Diggs logged five interceptions and made the Pro Bowl for the first time in his career. That offseason, he was named to the NFL Top-100 players list, checking in at No. 77. This season, a repeat of his five-interception season earned him another trip to the Pro Bowl.

Diggs has every right to be bitter about how things ended in Detroit. He was an ascending talent that worked his way up from being a sixth-round nickel corner into a starting safety role. Then last regime traded him away with no warning, leaving him “blindsided.”

Last Sunday, after the Seahawks defeated the Lions in Seattle, Diggs made his way through the sea of Lions players and personnel, touching base with people from his recent past that he “didn’t get to formally say goodbye to before I left”:

But Diggs wasn’t just sending thoughtful messages on social media. The Lions’ camera crew also caught this interaction between him and Penei Sewell (who was mic’d up for the game):

“Keep ballin’ boy,” Diggs says to Sewell. “Like I told you, embrace the city (of Detroit), They gonna love you. I promise you. I love that place.”

You can watch the entire Penei Sewell mic’d up segment here. (And I highly suggest you do)

Diggs has been asking for a contract extension from the Seahawks for some time now. Despite sitting on over $19 million in cap space, they have not rewarded him with one. After this Sunday, he will have played out the final year of his deal, making just over $3.6 million this season. Hardly a stellar figure for the back-to-back Pro Bowler.

If Diggs doesn’t land a contract extension in Seattle this offseason, he will hit the free agency market in March—and I know a place that he loves that will likely be in the market for a cornerstone Pro Bowl safety.

Come home, Quandre. We love you too. Come home.