ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. -- New Buffalo Bills coach Joe Brady expressed his support for wide receiver Keon Coleman, stating that "Keon Coleman is going to be a Buffalo Bill."
"I told Keon when I got hired, the best thing that happened to Keon Coleman was me being his head coach," Brady said Thursday, the day he was officially introduced for his new role. "I was one of the ones that stood on the table for Keon Coleman, and I believe in Keon Coleman."
Brady said that 2025 was a "learning year" for Coleman, adding that the Bills "had to put the team first in a lot of the elements."
"He's gonna continue to grow, but the elements that we saw in the draft process -- the confidence that I have in him and his ability -- and as long as he's handling what he needs to do off the field, I have no doubt that he's gonna be successful on the field," Brady said.
Brady, who served as the Bills' offensive coordinator for the last two seasons, said that Coleman's best days are ahead of him and that they have a vision for him continuing to grow in the offense. Brady added that, as the coordinator, he stood on the table for every decision the team makes and that when it comes to players' success with the team, they also need to make sure the system is as good as it can be.
Brady's support for Coleman, the 33rd overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft, comes in the wake of owner Terry Pegula's comments last week after the firing of coach Sean McDermott.
Pegula said the Bills' coaching staff, not general manager Brandon Beane, "pushed to draft Keon" in 2024 and added that Beane was "being a team player and taking advice of his coaching staff who felt strongly about the player."
Coleman, 22, has had two inconsistent seasons with the Bills. The former Florida State star was disciplined by McDermott in November for being late to a meeting and was a healthy scratch for four games, also failing to eclipse 50 receiving yards in a game since the season opener. He was benched for a quarter of a game his rookie season due to off-field timing issues.
By the end of the season, Coleman had slid down the depth chart and was Buffalo's sixth wide receiver. Coleman had 38 catches for 404 yards and four touchdowns in 13 games this season.
"Mr. Pegula can literally do whatever Mr. Pegula wants to do," Brady said Thursday. "And part of the thing that I've loved about this is, look, the communication and airing your thoughts and your feelings, that's what I want. That's part of our culture.
"... Keon Coleman is going to be on our football team, and I have no issues with, if there [are] elements that need to be cleaned up from that, those are conversations that we can have. But Keon knows how I feel about him; how much I love him and the faith that I still have in him."
Bills star quarterback Josh Allen also expressed his support for Coleman on Thursday, saying the receiver "will come back from [last week's comments].
"I'm not going to give up on [Coleman]," Allen said. "He's got too much ability, and I will not give up on him. We're gonna work tirelessly, him and me, and so will everybody else in this building, to make sure that whenever we step foot on the field, that we're gonna find ways to win football games. And he's gonna be part of that."
Beane, who was promoted to president of football operations last week, again expressed his support of Coleman and stated that he has talked to Coleman's agent, Paul DeRousselle, a couple of times.
Beane added that Coleman is "head down, ready to go, and that's our plan moving forward."
