You know the picture.
After the Texans defeated the Bills last season, online fans expertly snapped a screenshot from a postgame video to highlight a split-second reaction from Houston receiver Stefon Diggs, who had just shared an embrace with Bills quarterback and former teammate Josh Allen. The resulting photo made it look like Diggs was side-eyeing Allen, with whom he shared a somewhat rocky working relationship, and quickly became a mainstay NFL meme.
But speaking after the Patriots dethroned the 4-0 Bills in prime time on Sunday night, Diggs—who, mind you, shared a hug with Allen and other ex-Buffalo teammates both before and after the game—set the record straight on what was actually happening in that much-discussed photo (and not a moment too soon, considering the Pats had just tweeted a version of it as a cheeky way of celebrating the win.)
"That's my dawg," Diggs said of Allen on Sunday. "Obviously, things happen, and business happens, but spent a lot of time here. I got a lot of love and respect for that young man. Tremendous player. He's one of the boys. ... So when I see him, I try and give him that reminder.
"Even last year, they had that picture, right, of me side-eying him, but they just kind of caught it at the wrong time. I always wanted to speak on that photo because I was staring at him in the moment because it was like, 'Damn, that was my brother.'"
He continued: "I do got a lot of love and respect for him. It kind of looked like it was a side-eye, but that's not what it was. I was staring at him for a second as he was walking away, like 'Damn, that was my guy.'"
Watch that answer below:
Stefon Diggs spoke about Josh Allen after the game.
— Matt Parrino (@MattParrino) October 6, 2025
“We built a special bond. That was my guy.”
He cleared up the side eye picture from last year (Patriots social team posted it an hour before). Continues to be one of the all time bizarre breakups in NFL history. pic.twitter.com/jixjIbsCDD
Diggs was otherwise complimentary of Allen and his former team during his big return to Buffalo, though he still noted after the fact that the win felt "100%" personal.
"Obviously, I love those guys, still got a good relationship with those guys, got a lot of respect for them, but I love the game of football more," Diggs told NBC Sports's Melissa Stark. "Every time I go out here, I'm trying to prove it, not only to them but to myself."
Fair enough.
Anyway, we doubt the side-eye meme will go away now that Diggs has addressed it, but at least we know what he was thinking in that moment.
More NFL on Sports Illustrated
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Stefon Diggs Explained That Viral Photo of Him Side-Eyeing Josh Allen.
