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EspañolBuffalo Bills general manager Brandon Beane addressed the media at the NFL Combine on Tuesday to speak about the team’s plans this offseason.
Among draft and salary cap talk, something came back to the forefront of the conversation which has been a hot topic this offseason, and that is the discussion regarding wide receiver Keon Coleman.
Coleman is entering his third season after an up-and-down first two years in the NFL. He’s had just two games over 100 receiving yards and he's been disciplined multiple times by the team due to off-field issues.
The lack of consistency from Coleman and the discussion surrounding him even got a rise out of Bills owner Terry Pegula in the end-of-season presser.
Speaking on Coleman Tuesday, Beane said, "It's the maturity... it's the off-the-field... I've seen that many times get in the way of people's opportunities to grow."
Beane says Coleman had a stellar offseason and training camp last year, but has let some off-field behavior affect his growth.
"That's the challenge with Keon... can you go back and do what you did all offseason and training camp... and if you remember he had a great game one against Baltimore... don't let some of the maturity issues off the field effect the product on the field," Beane said.
These comments come just a few days after a post on X from Coleman’s agent, Paul DeRousselle, which subliminally stated, “Don't throw rocks publicly and come back track privately. Stay on that side."
One thing that is working in Coleman's favor is faith from his GM and his quarterback, Josh Allen, that he'll be a part of great things going forward for the Bills offense. He'll also have some new coaches to work with this year.
"We've got some new coaches and they're excited to meet him and get to work with him," Beane said. "[The new coaches] were aware of him in the draft process a couple years ago so they kind of want to start molding him in the way they see and envision him for our team."
Coleman has 960 receiving yards and eight receiving touchdowns through his first two seasons in the NFL. Beane, Allen, and head coach Joe Brady would love for Coleman to take the next step in year three, and it appears he'll have the opportunity to do so.
This article originally appeared on Bills Wire: Brandon Beane: Bills believe in Keon Coleman despite maturity concerns