Alan Pergament: Stefon Diggs and Damar Hamlin continue to live in national media spotlight – for very different reasons

To borrow a famous quote from Arthur Miller’s “Death of a Salesman,” “attention must be paid” to Buffalo Bills players Stefon Diggs and Damar Hamlin entering the regular season for very different reasons.
Diggs is supposedly unhappy while Hamlin is happy to be alive.
This column gives both attention, starting with Diggs.
Stephen A. Smith just knows Diggs is unhappy. Bills basher Nick Wright, Chris Broussard and Jason Whitlock have piled on.
It’s best to take all the noise from the national guys who couldn’t find Highmark Stadium with GPS as a cry for attention.
I prefer to talk to a national sports TV celebrity who actually has spoken to Diggs.
Nate Burleson, the former NFL receiver who now does double duty on “The NFL Today” and “CBS Mornings,” filled the bill.
In a conference call, I noted everyone seems to have an opinion about how Diggs is feeling before asking Burleson if the national perception is that he is unhappy and if there was some kind of rift between Diggs and quarterback Josh Allen or whether that was just normal behavior between a receiver and quarterback that is worked out.
“You trying to say all wide receivers are divas?” cracked Burleson.
After assuring him I was careful to avoid saying that, Burleson revealed he was with Diggs on Monday in Westchester County, shooting a story for “CBS Mornings” about nutrition and the evolution of the modern-day athlete.
Burleson proceeded with a lengthy response to the question that was more thorough than anything he has time to say on “The NFL Today.” His answer reminded me why he is my favorite studio analyst.
He said Diggs was optimistic about the season.
“When I asked him specifically about their relationship, he told me straight up the one thing he loves about Josh Allen was, ‘He is a real dude,’ ” said Burleson. “He said sometimes he would join a team and right out of the gate he knew he had the respect of his teammates, would fight for his teammates, would bleed for his teammates. But certain guys you just don’t vibe with. He said the moment he got in that locker room, he fell in love with Josh. He looked at him like a little big brother. And I think Josh looks at him the same way.
“So my take, just trying to pull what I could and reading between the lines, I didn’t think there was an issue between Stefon Diggs and Josh Allen. I don’t want to make any assumptions, but I believe Stefon Diggs is happy where he is at.”
Then money entered the conversation.
“I am not sure if money plays a role even though he is in a current contract. But these contracts these guys are in get outdated fairly quickly with how the bar is raised each year financially.
“I was expecting there would be some turmoil he would speak about or some bad body language I could read into. I couldn’t catch that. I felt like he was going to show up to camp, to be ready to rock ‘n’ roll, be one of the top three receivers in the NFL this year and try to make another run.”
“When speaking of close but no cigar, I asked him about that picture in 2021 when he was watching the Kansas City Chiefs celebrate (after a Bills playoff loss) with confetti everywhere, with his hands on his hips. That iconic shot of him after a loss. And I was like, ‘How do you feel about that?’
“He said it is the good and the bad, the yin and the yang, the positive and the negative. The shot of him – almost the same pose but Superman-like – after the Minneapolis Miracle (a 61-yard Diggs touchdown catch to beat New Orleans in a 2018 playoff game) was the complete opposite. Him taking in all the pain and the sadness and frustration of putting out that effort and falling just short. I could tell he started to fatigue.
“And as every guy has played this game knows, there is a point in your career where that youthful exuberance and excitement and enthusiasm that you have, ‘I’m going to make it to a Super Bowl every year’ starts to dissipate, fade and that twinkle in his eye wasn’t as bright as it once was when he was younger. I was talking to a great, mature veteran Stefon Diggs. But I feel like the relationship between him and Josh Allen, they all good.”
Take that, Stephen A. and the rest of you national attention seekers.
Now on to Hamlin, who is getting more positive attention this offseason because of his amazing recovery from cardiac arrest during a “Monday Night Football” game against Cincinnati on Jan. 2.
Hamlin appears on the heartwarming CBS reality show, “Secret Celebrity Renovation” (8 p.m. Friday, WIVB-TV).
The program features celebrities gifting “a surprise home renovation to a meaningful person who helped guide them to success.”
This edition of the remodeling show could be subtitled: “Damar Hamlin, Role Model.”
Hamlin returns to his hometown of Pittsburgh to tackle a major home renovation for his humble and kind grandmother, Portia Stockton.
Hamlin uses a huge hammer to destroy parts of his grandmother’s house with the same enthusiasm he brings to tackling opponents. He also helps install a new staircase and does other odds and ends with home improvement contractor Rob Mariano of “Survivor” fame.
Hamlin talks about the kindness of his grandmother, who had a big influence on his life and that of others. He explains that she is known for letting 23 people go in and out of her home and giving up her bedroom to guests while she sleeps on a recliner.
It’s an uplifting program in which host Nischelle Turner, Mariano and interior designer Sabrina Soto (“Design Star,” ”Trading Spaces”) supply energy, humor and expertise while remodeling Portia’s home so beautifully that she doesn’t recognize it after the big reveal.
The show also reveals how likable Hamlin is and how much he is loved in the old neighborhood where he is a role model.
I am not sure anything can make America love Hamlin more, but this show just might do it. He takes Turner to the field he started playing football. A photo of Hamlin in uniform at age 5 is only one of the moments that is sure to make Bills fans smile.
The only disappointment for Bills fans might be that Buffalo is barely mentioned after the opening scene that shows the terrifying moment Hamlin was injured in the Cincinnati game.
But being bothered by the lack of Buffalo time would be selfish. In its own way, the remodeling of Hamlin’s grandmother’s home is as uplifting as the Minneapolis Miracle.