Bills Mafia loves a good overreaction. When the team wins, Josh Allen walks on water and when the team loses… suddenly everyone’s getting fired, traded, or benche… and sometimes all three.
After the Buffalo Bills’ Monday night 24-14 loss to the Atlanta Falcons, Bills Mafia’s passion turned into frustration, and once again the fanbase needed a scapegoat. This week’s target? Second-year wide receiver Keon Coleman.
Coleman finished the night with just three receptions on six targets for 11 yards. It was
a quiet, very forgettable night for a player who flashed star potential earlier this season. But, through six weeks, Coleman’s struggles are about usage, not ability. And taking him off the field isn’t going to fix anything. He’s had solid games and yes, some quiet ones. But the kid is still developing, and the offense needs to help him, not hide him.
The Bigger Picture
Here’s the reality: Keon Coleman needs to be a steady contributor in his first full season as a featured wideout. Through six games, he’s caught 24 passes on 35 targets for 237 yards and two touchdowns. That’s a 68.6% catch rate, which isn’t bad for a young player still finding his rhythm in an offense that’s been searching for consistency. So why not throw the ball at him MORE. Let’s me be clear, none of us truly know what Coleman IS as a player, but we do know what he COULD be — because we have seen glimpses.
Week 1 was the blueprint. Against the Ravens, Coleman looked every bit like the guy Buffalo drafted him to be; eight catches on 11 targets for 112 yards and a touchdown, including several clutch plays in the fourth quarter that helped spark the comeback victory. He was confident, physical, and clearly in sync with Josh Allen.
That wasn’t an accident. It was smart play design and good rhythm between quarterback and receiver.
The Real Issue is How Coleman’s Being Used
Coleman’s been used almost exclusively on the outside and that’s where things have gone wrong. At Florida State, he spent a significant amount of time in the slot, where his size, body control, and physicality gave him favorable matchups. Instead of leveraging that, the Bills have been asking him to win deep or along the boundary making him fight for 50/50 balls or win a foot race.
The fix? Don’t reduce Coleman’s role. Redefine it. Move him into the slot. Give him some quick hitters; scheme easy completions to get his confidence back up.
The Bills’ offense looked flat and out of sync in Atlanta. But taking one of your young playmakers out of the mix isn’t the solution. Allen needs options he can trust, especially with Palmer potentially out for a minute, Kincaid and Samuels always injured, and Moore increasingly showing that he is not working out.
Getting Coleman going early in games could help settle the offense down and open things up for everyone else. When he’s involved, the Bills move the ball more effectively. It’s really that simple.
The Bottom Line
Every young receiver goes through ups and downs, and Coleman is no different. But you don’t develop confidence by sitting on the bench. You develop it by playing through the rough stretches and let coaching and repetition do its part.
So no, Bills Mafia, the answer isn’t to bench Keon Coleman. It’s to put him in a position to succeed. Line him up in different positions. Call some quick routes. Feed him the ball.
Because the sooner the Bills remember what worked in Week 1, the sooner Keon Coleman can remind everyone why he was the spark this offense needed and why he should be part of the solution, not the scapegoat.
