The Buffalo Bills were in the market for a wide receiver early in this year’s NFL Draft, and they got one, picking Florida State’s Keon Coleman atop the second round.
From the beginning, Josh Allen has been excited about Coleman’s potential in Buffalo’s offense. Getting to work with the first-team All-ACC performer at OTAs has done nothing to change his mind.
On Thursday, Allen spoke with Mike Garafolo and Tom Pelissero of NFL Network about Coleman’s fit in Buffalo.
“I think his play style is what we needed in our offense,” Allen told NFL Garafolo and Pelissero. “Talking with our offensive coordinator (Joe Brady), our quarterbacks coach (Ronald Curry), (general manager) Brandon Beane and, obviously, coach (Sean) McDermott, a guy that’s a big-bodied guy and can go win one a back-shoulder fade and is not afraid to be a physical wide receiver.
“I think you pair him with some of the guys we have in our room right now, I think Mack Hollins has been such a great addition so far to that room, his mentality, his mindset is infectious to others. Curtis Samuel, he’s been showing up every single day ready to work. Then old faces like Khalil (Shakir) and Dalton (Kincaid). You start pairing those guys up with Dawson (Knox) and Coleman in this mix now, we’re gonna have a pretty solid group that works together.”
The Bills’ wide receiver corps is going to have a much different look in 2024 following the departures of Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis.
The hope is that the 6-foot-4, 215-pound Coleman will be able to do his part in filling the void.
“He texted me the day of and was like, ‘You’re the guy I want. I watched a lot of receivers and I want to play with you,'” Coleman told the team’s official website about Allen following the draft last month. “And I’ve been saying the same thing. I want to play with the guy that wears number 17. I think he’s a great quarterback, one of the best in the league right now and I would love to be catching passes from him. I’m ready for that.”