A strange few days for the Buffalo Bills included owner Terry Pegula effectively throwing 23-year-old wide receiver Keon Coleman under the bus in defense of general manager Brandon Beane.
Pegula stepped in on a question intended for Beane at their Wednesday press conference, putting the blame for picking Coleman with the 33rd-overall pick in 2024 on Sean McDermott and his coaching staff.
When Beane answered the initial question directed at him, he didn’t mention Coleman. Some 25 minutes later in the press conference, Beane said that he made the pick and owns it. Around that time, video surfaced on social media of Beane showing his excitement for drafting Coleman.
Of course, it’s that time of year when access to players is rather limited, so Coleman has understandably been quiet in the days after the fact. But, on Friday, reports concerning how Coleman took the comments from Pegula revealed what’s next for the young wideout.
Keon Coleman’s reaction to Terry Pegula comments help steady the Bills after turbulent week
According to The Athletic’s Joe Buscaglia, Coleman didn’t let the owner’s comments about him get to him.
“A source close to Coleman told The Athletic’s Tim Graham that the receiver didn’t understand Pegula’s comments but quickly shook them off,” Buscaglia wrote on Friday. “Coleman has not requested a trade and is proceeding as though he will play for the Bills in 2026.”
“He was taken aback at first,’ the source said, ‘but he just went and worked out, getting ready for year three.”
While Coleman would have been justified in raising a fuss over the comments, it’s refreshing that he is taking it in stride and keeping focus on next season. After all, the Bills need wide receiver help this offseason, and Coleman surely doesn’t want that to come at his expense after a frustrating sophomore season in the NFL.
Still, Coleman has a long way to go in earning back trust to keep his spot in 2026, especially with a new coaching staff coming in. Coleman was benched in four games in 2025, most times for disciplinary reasons, though later in the season it came down to personnel decisions.
Nonetheless, his calm response to the owner’s chaos-inducing interruption doesn’t detract from how Bills Mafia feels about the entire situation. After that fiasco, it goes without saying that Coleman isn’t the only one in the Bills’ building who needs to earn back some trust this offseason.
Hopefully, whoever Pegula and Beane decide to be the next head coach of the Bills can get Coleman back on the right track within the offense, starting next season.