New England Patriots players Stefon Diggs and Christian Barmore are in the news for the wrong reasons.
There's a lot going on with the New England Patriots right now.
Mike Vrabel's team has a chance to be the No. 1 seed in the AFC playoffs if the Patriots beat the Miami Dolphins in Week 18 and the Los Angeles Chargers beat the Denver Broncos.
However, that's not the main storyline in Foxborough right now, as Stefon Diggs and Christian Barmore are facing charges.
Diggs is facing a felony charge of strangulation and a misdemeanor charge of assault, while Barmore is facing a misdemeanor charge of assault and battery on a household/family member
Diggs and Barmore spoke to the media on Friday, and as expected, both players declined to talk about their cases.
"It's definitely an open case, so I can't even say anything about it," Diggs said.
"I'm focused on Miami and playing football," Barmore said.
Attorney David Meier, who is representing both players in their cases, released statements denying the charges.
Diggs and Barmore are expected to play Sunday, with Vrabel saying Wednesday that the Patriots have taken the allegations "very seriously and what comes of that, then we'll have another discussion."
Diggs' arraignment is scheduled for Jan. 23, while Barmore's is Feb. 3.
"Being a football team is hard. You band together and lean on your brothers, you lean on your people you spend the most time with. For me, I've been dealing with s--- my whole life. Nothing new to me," Diggs said. "I just got to roll with the punches, try to stay as positive as I can. It's definitely something you always have to adjust to, but I'm good for whatever."
Diggs has 82 catches for 970 yards and four touchdowns on the season.
Meanwhile, Barmore has one sack, 12 solo tackles, three tackles for loss and nine QB hits.
The Patriots are Super Bowl contenders for the first time in the post-Tom Brady era. Vrabel and Co. are fifth in the NFL in points per game and points per game allowed.