To make it to the NFL, or the upper echelons of any professional sport, athletes need to find ways to self-motivate. Tom Brady fuels himself by remembering that he was pick 199 in the draft. Michael Jordan rembered that he was cut from his high school basketball team. Other athletes remember brutal losses.
Perhaps that is what we saw from Stefon Diggs after the AFC Championship game.
While the Kansas City Chiefs were celebrating on the field, and being awarded the Lamar Hunt trophy as the champions of the conference, a sole figure clad in Bills’ road whites was lingering away from the celebration. It was Diggs, the wide receiver, standing on the sidelines watching the victorious Chiefs celebrate as the confetti poured down from above and the fans in attendance soaked it all in.
So too did Diggs:
After an All-Pro season, @stefondiggs stayed on the field to watch the Chiefs' AFC Championship ceremony. đź’Ż #BUFvsKC pic.twitter.com/fNghAmvn1g
— NFL (@NFL) January 25, 2021
Elite athletes find ways to light the fire within. Diggs just finished an All-Pro season where he led the league in receiving yardage. But you can bet that this moment in time will be seared into his mind through every offseason workout.