Bills Owner Says Coaching Staff Wanted WR Keon Coleman, Not GM Brandon Beane

Speaking at a press conference Wednesday morning to explain his decision to fire HC Sean McDermott, Bills owner Terry Pegula interrupted a question for GM Brandon Beane about WR Keon Coleman. 

“The coaching staff pushed to pick Keon,” Pegula said via Alaina Getzenberg, adding Coleman wasn’t at the top of Beane’s board but he was being a team player by making the pick. 

Pegula’s decision to retain Beane with a promotion while holding McDermott accountable for Buffalo’s failure to reach a Super Bowl with QB Josh Allen has come under fire from inside and outside the Buffalo fanbase this week. 

Beane and his roster decisions have been put under the microscope, including his selection of Coleman which failed to reinforce the receiving corps. Coleman was a healthy scratch multiple times this season for being late to team meetings. 

Pegula wanted to defend Beane and make it clear he felt the criticism was unfair, which he did multiple times throughout the press conference. In the process, he threw Coleman under the bus next to McDermott. 

Coleman, 22, transferred to Florida State after spending the first two years of his collegiate career with Michigan State. He earned third-team All-Big Ten honors in 2022 and was first-team All-ACC in 2023. He declared early for the 2024 NFL Draft. 

The Bills selected Coleman with the No. 33 overall pick in the second round. He signed a four-year, $10,074,258 contract that included a $4,146,732 signing bonus.

In 2025, Coleman appeared in 13 games for the Bills and caught 38 passes on 59 targets for 404 yards and four touchdowns. 

We’ll have more on Coleman and the Bills as the news is available.