The Buffalo Bills fell four points shy of advancing to their first Super Bowl since 1993. It’s a fate the Bills have grown accustomed to after taking strong teams into the playoffs in each of the last five seasons only to experience heartbreak – their last three playoff losses to the Kansas City Chiefs have been by a combined 12 points.
Bills’ GM Brandon Beane hoped to replenish the roster in the draft, particularly on the offensive side of the ball, after losing key pieces during the offseason. His top pick, wideout Keon Coleman out of Florida State, did not pay immediate dividends for Buffalo.
Now, in a ranking of each team’s 2024 draft class by NFL.com’s Gennaro Filice, Coleman’s lackluster campaign is dragging the Bills’ overall grade down. Coleman struggled to create separation and make contested catches as a pro, according to Filice. “His inability to separate was clear to the naked eye… Meanwhile, Pro Football Focus charted that Coleman received 19 contested targets and caught just seven, giving him a subpar conversion rate of 36.8 percent,” Filice wrote.
“Coleman struggled to find a connection with Josh Allen on any sort of pass, catching just 10 of his 29 targets over the final seven games (playoffs included).” Despite solid contributions from rookie running back Ray Davis, Coleman’s disappointing debut season led to a draft grade of D+ from NFL.com.
The Bills gambled on a rookie WR in 2024
To be fair, a great deal was expected from Coleman in his first year in Western New York. The Bills lost their top two wideouts prior to the 2024 campaign. All-Pro receiver Stefon Diggs was traded to the Houston Texans after four years in Buffalo that included four straight 1,000-yard seasons. And the Bills let Gabe Davis walk in free agency, allowing the Jacksonville Jaguars to sign him to a three-year, $39 million deal.
Diggs and Davis combined for 241 targets, 152 receptions, 1,929 yards and 15 touchdowns in 2023, in addition to their chemistry with quarterback Josh Allen and proven ability to show up in big games. Coleman was targeted 57 times in his rookie season, contributing 29 receptions for 556 yards and four scores.
It’s certainly not an embarrassing showing. But with Allen and the Bills seemingly on the cusp of making the leap to conference champs, a massive downgrade at wideout did not help. Allen, as you may have heard, still managed to win league MVP despite not having his best statistical output. And Buffalo managed to win 13 games and reach the AFC Championship, where the team fell to the Kansas City Chiefs 32-29.
Allen led the Bills to the 10th ranked overall offense in 2024 as the group averaged 359.1 yards per game. Last season Buffalo finished fourth overall, with 374.5 yards per contest. In 2023, the Bills were second in the league with 397.6 yards of offense each week.
Was the dropoff all on Coleman? Of course not. And the team should have had a better plan after losing such a significant part of the passing game. At the very least, Buffalo shouldn't have traded back in the draft with the Chiefs, who selected Xavier Worthy with the Bills’ original first round pick.
