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Bills owner threw Keon Coleman under the bus

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports | By Grey Papke | Last updated Jan 21, 2026 1:30 PM ET

The Buffalo Bills went out of their way to throw former coach Sean McDermott and wide receiver Keon Coleman under the bus in a wild press conference on Wednesday.

Bills owner Terry Pegula jumped in to defend general manager Brandon Beane during a press conference after Beane was questioned about drafting Coleman in the second round of the 2024 draft. Pegula blamed the Coleman pick on the coaching staff and said Beane was being a “team player” by making it.

“The coaching staff pushed to draft Keon,” Pegula told reporters. “I’m not saying Brandon wouldn’t have drafted him, but he wasn’t his next choice. That was Brandon being a team player and taking advice of his coaching staff who felt strongly about the player. For some reason, he’s taken heat over it and not saying a word about it, but I’m here to tell you the true story.”

Wow. #Bills owner Terry Pegula says the coaching staff pushed to draft WR Keon Coleman and that was never GM Brandon Beane's top choice in that situation.

"That was Brandon being a team player. … He's taken heat over it. I'm here to tell you the true story."

Wowza. I've never… pic.twitter.com/mimTgT9zc9
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) January 21, 2026

This is a wild intervention by Pegula, especially considering Coleman is still on the team. It does not exactly speak well of the organizational structure if he is telling the truth, and certainly suggests that Beane and McDermott were not in alignment on some key decisions.

McDermott was fired on Monday, a move that was criticized by some who felt Beane deserved to go as well. The Bills have struggled to draft well in recent seasons and have become increasingly reliant on quarterback Josh Allen to carry them as far as he can. The lack of weapons for Allen was especially evident this season, with Khalil Shakir’s 719 receiving yards leading the team. Coleman was supposed to help fix that, but fell out of favor and wound up benched amid questions about his effort.

Coleman remains on the roster, but with the way he was talked about in this press conference, his time in Buffalo might well be coming to an end.

This article first appeared on Larry Brown Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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