The Patriots finally have a No. 1 receiver after signing Stefon Diggs earlier this week. Now the question is when will he be able to play?

Diggs tore his ACL on October 27th last year. Recovery times can differ based on a number of factors, but it generally takes around 9-12 months to come back from an ACL tear.

The 31-year-old receiver sounded cautiously optimistic when he was asked about when he’ll be able to fully participate in practice with the Patriots during a press conference on Friday afternoon, Khari A. Thompson of the Boston Globe reports.

“When the whistle blows, huh?” Diggs said. “We’ll see, but right now I’m ahead of schedule, I’m trying to stay ahead of schedule, and I pretty much try to take it day by day. I try not to put the carrot before the horse, but here we are. Here’s the horse right here. … We’ll keep playing it by ear.”

The four-time Pro Bowler posted six consecutive 1,000-yard seasons before the injury cut his season short after eight games last year. He had 47 catches for 496 yards and three touchdowns at the time of the injury.

He said his Patriots contract was about what he expected to get. New England was the only team he visited, though he was considering a few others. The deal is worth $69 million over three years.

“I kind of figured it was going to be around that area in the 20’s [million-dollar per year range],” Diggs said. “Considering that I came off of an injury but also factoring in the fact that I’m one of the only receivers to have six consecutive 1,000-yard seasons. So as far as the production, it’s always been there. I’ve always been productive as a receiver.”

“I can move the chains. I can do intermediate. I can go deep. I’ve done it all throughout my career,” he added. “My resume kind of speaks for itself, it’s more so the injury that obviously would make the money be what the money is. Now that I’m 31 years old, this was my first injury after 10 years considering that I had little injuries but nothing that was that serious.”

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