After benchings and off-field maturity concerns, the former second-round pick faces a defining third season. Now, the wideout is overhauling his mindset to salvage his Buffalo career.
Keon Coleman knows he’s running out of chances. The 33rd overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft is heading into his third year with the Buffalo Bills, and he knows what the team is expecting of him.
“For me, it’s make or break,” Coleman said while speaking to the media on Tuesday.
[If you are] s—, you might not be here. Simple as that.
“I know what I'm capable of. So, if I fall anything short of that, I'm doing myself a disservice and my team."
In his second season, the 22-year-old receiver had 38 catches for 404 yards and four touchdowns. But it was the off-field issues that became a problem for the young player.
In November, Coleman was made a healthy scratch for the first time in his career after being late to a team meeting. He was also scratched for three other games, leading to questions about his maturity and if he had what it took to be a professional.
Coleman was blunt in his assessment of his 2024 season, calling it “ass”.
“Getting benched four games—some s— like that. Unacceptable,” he said. “Ended off on a decent note, had a touchdown, so that was—I wouldn't even call that a confidence boost, it was just a positive to end the season on. But we lost. So, that was another negative to erase that. But, I mean, I don't need self-motivation, though. I know what I am here to do and what I am capable of doing."
It’s been a tumultuous offseason for Coleman, with rumblings of his future with the team picking up steam after owner Terry Pegula made some baffling comments on Coleman back in January.
Coleman said that he didn’t have a reaction to it and that “words are one thing; actions are another.”
“I’m still here,” he said, admitting that he hasn’t spoken to Pegula directly since those comments.
Regarding all the trade speculation and rumors about his future, Coleman said that it was never something that was presented to him. He also stated that he heard all the outside talk about it, but that he didn’t care. He was there to control what he could control.
To that extent, Coleman says he is “taking the proper precautions” and learning how to be a better pro moving forward.
It’s something that his coaches and teammates are also noticing.
"I've already seen a shift in his mindset this year, and how hard he's been coming out to practice and working out, so that's obviously very promising,” quarterback Josh Allen said.
“I fully believe in him. I still do, and that will never change."
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