For Stefon Diggs, his extension is more than just a raise

The Minnesota Vikings wide receiver has worked his butt off to get to where he is today and on Tuesday he was rewarded with a contract extension.

When the Minnesota Vikings gave Stefon Diggs a call back in 2015 to select him in the fifth round of the NFL Draft, the receiver wasn’t just sitting at home and waiting around like most draft hopefuls do. No, Diggs was actually watching film of himself to find the parts of his game that he needed to work on.

This strict work ethic the receiver displayed on draft day has stayed with him during his career with the Vikings. Thanks to his dedication to his craft, Diggs has evolved into one of the top players on Minnesota’s current roster.

On Tuesday, all of the blood and sweat he has put into becoming a great NFL receiver was rewarded with a contract extension from the Vikings.

Diggs’ new deal will keep him in the Twin Cities until 2024 and pay him more than $70 million. Money that might have not seemed attainable back in 2015 when he didn’t get drafted until the fifth round.

But after catching 200 passes for more than 2,400 yards and 15 touchdowns in his first three seasons with Minnesota, the team knew they had to make sure they didn’t let Diggs out of their grasp.

So before he could even think about becoming a free-agent in 2019, the Vikings worked night and day to come up with a new contract that their young receiver would agree to.

Yes, Diggs’ yearly salary will now be an amount that most people could only dream about. But for the Minnesota receiver, his new deal means so much more than just another zero on his paycheck.

Minnesota Vikings

During a press conference after practice on Tuesday, Diggs shared a story about fulfilling a promise he made to his father before he passed away in 2008 of congestive heart failure.

"“My dad sat me down a couple of months before he passed away and he just told me, ‘look after your brothers, look after your mom, and basically look after your family,’ and that meant a lot to me. So with this day, it just came full circle.I have a lot of emotions, (as) you can understand a little bit. But for it to come all the way around, I’m happy that I can look at my mom and smile and tell her that everything is going to be okay.”"

The promise Diggs made to his father 10 years ago is a lot for anyone to take on, let alone a 14-year-old kid. But the Vikings receiver kept his word and worked extremely hard to get where he is today.

With his extension, Diggs can now take care of his mom and siblings for a long time.

The Minnesota receiver has mentioned in the past that his father was not really someone to hand out praise or compliments too often. But if he were still here today, there’s a good chance that he would be very proud of the goals his son has achieved.