Patriots were finalists for Stefon Diggs before trade to Bills?

The New England Patriots have had a rather weak receiving core for the last couple of years. It appears Bill Belichick was trying to change that last offseason. 

According to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, the Patriots were finalists for Stefon Diggs before he was ultimately traded from the Minnesota Vikings to the Buffalo Bills.

The Bills offered the Vikings 2020 their first-, fifth- and sixth-round picks and a 2021 fourth-round pick for Diggs. Minnesota called New England to see if it had a counteroffer. Belichick did not, making Diggs a Bill. 

The trade worked out for the Bills, who are now one win away from the Super Bowl. It also worked out for the Vikings, who used one of those picks on Justin Jefferson, who had an incredible rookie campaign.

New England will be in the market for a wide receiver this offseason, but it also needs help at quarterback and tight end, among other positions. It's unclear what the Patriots plan to do in the 2021 draft, but they'd benefit from selecting a QB in the first round. Unless, of course, they plan to take a run at Matthew Stafford, which is a conversation for another day.