Tag: Keon Coleman

Bills’ Keon Coleman makes huge play, scores on 4th down vs. Texans

Bills’ Keon Coleman makes huge play, scores on 4th down vs. Texans

Josh Allen called for his team to stay on the field on fourth down against the Texans.

The Bills listened. Good thing they did.

From down 20-10 to a 20-17 scoreline, the Bills cut into the Texans’ lead with a huge play from second-round rookie Keon Coleman.

Running a short route just beyond the sticks, Coleman kept the drive alive… but he did not go down. Staying on his feet, Coleman went 49 yards down the field for the incredible touchdown.

Check out the touchdown below:

Four Bills rookies primed for increased opportunities vs. Texans

Four Bills rookies primed for increased opportunities vs. Texans

The Buffalo Bills have been hit with the injury bug to start their 2024 campaign.

Injuries are always a big factor in any NFL season, but the Bills keep losing vital pieces to their team, and the losses are starting to pile up.

Already down to their backup linebackers and nickel back, the team is now without defensive tackle Ed Oliver (hamstring) and safety Taylor Rapp (concussion). So, now the injury bug has affected all three levels of the defense.

It has started to make its way to the offense as well, as starting slot receiver Khalil Shakir has been ruled out with an ankle injury.

Injuries are never good for a team, but for young individuals finally getting their break, it’s a great opportunity to put their play on film.

Due to injury (and the suspension of Von Miller), four Bills rookies will be stepping into a presumed bigger role on Sunday: defensive tackle DeWayne Carter, safety Cole Bishop, defensive end Javon Soloman, and wide receiver Keon Coleman.

DeWayne Carter

(Photo by Rich Barnes/Getty Images)

DeWayne Carter is now thrust into a more prominent role on the defensive line in the absence of Ed Oliver. Carter hasn’t seen much action to start his rookie year. He has played just 81 snaps through four games. Last week against Baltimore he played his most amount of snaps (26) and was able to record two tackles and an assist. The Bills were excited to be able to draft Carter after adding a third-round pick in a draft day trade with the Kansas City Chiefs. Now it’s time to see what the former Duke Blue Devil team captain is all about.

Cole Bishop

Sep 23, 2024; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Buffalo Bills safety Cole Bishop (24) in pass coverage against Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Tim Jones (15) in the second quarter at Highmark Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark Konezny-Imagn Images

Cole Bishop saw his first extended work of the season in Week 4 after Rapp left the game. He played 41 snaps and logged three tackles. According to PFF, he had a 33% missed tackle rate, so that is something he will have to improve on. He is now making his first career start. The instincts in coverage on the second level and the ability to break down and make tackles is on tape from his time at the University of Utah. Now he has to prove he can learn quickly at the next level. He will face a big test in his first start going up against a dangerous Texans’ passing attack.

Javon Solomon

Credit: Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images

Rookie edge defender Javon Solomon’s 16 sacks at Troy led the FBS in 2023. And, in limited snaps so far this year (17 total), he has shown flashes. With Von Miller being suspended four games, now is Solomon’s time to shine. Through his first 17 pro snaps, he has posted an impressive 93.3 defense grade and a 93.6 pass rush grade, according to PFF. His pass rush grade only trails Aidan Hutchinson and Myles Garrett in the entire NFL. They each have over 100 pass rush snaps while Solomon only has 11, but the flashes are there.

Keon Coleman

Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

The Bills’ number one wide receiver Khalil Shakir will miss the game Sunday. While Shakir and Coleman don’t line up in the same spots often, there will still be more targets to go around on offense. Coleman and quarterback Josh Allen were able to get on the same page in the second half of Week 4’s loss. They connected on two impressive back-shoulder receptions on the sideline. Coleman has the physical size and athletic ability to out-jump and out-reach mostly any secondary defender. Now that he has more trust in his quarterback, and with Shakir being out, it will be interesting to see how much they lean on their top draft choice from April.

Bills QB Josh Allen’s 52-yard tightrope pass had this unique stat

Bills QB Josh Allen’s 52-yard tightrope pass had this unique stat

The Buffalo Bills experienced the first loss of the season, falling 35-10 to the  Baltimore Ravens.

While the Bills certainly had their struggles during the game, quarterback  Josh Allen did take several big shots downfield.

While receiver Keon Coleman and tight end Dalton Kincaid missed on some contested jump balls that would have made for some big time plays, the game had some highlight reel plays as well.

Those highlights were headlined by Bills quarterback Josh Allen, who managed to complete his latest jaw-dropping play.

On a 3rd-and-5 possession in the third quarter, Allen threw a lofty pass 52-yards for a completion to receiver Khalil Shakir.

What’s more, the play featured some interesting Next Gen Stats that stood out…

Allen was less than a yard from the sideline when he completed the throw before going out of bounds, and Shakir adjusted to haul in the catch for the big gain.

While the play was a big one on its own, it also puts Allen into an interesting category.

Since his rookie season in 2018, the Bills QB has completed 6-of-7 such passes within a single yard of the sideline on plays he’s extended.

What’s more, those went for 118 yards with 3 touchdown scores.

While evading tackles to accomplish such a feat on passes within a yard from going out of bounds is, in and of itself impressive, it’s the basis for comparison that goes even further as to distinguish how special that ability is.

On passes within less than a yard of the sideline, the rest of the NFL is only 1-for-16 on such attempts.

Allen’s been impressive overall so far this season, ranking in the top ten of passers in the league in completion percentage as well as touchdowns, and going for 198 straight pass attempts without an interception.

Bills locker room weigh-in following loss to Ravens: ‘Got to be better’

Bills lock room weigh-in following loss to Ravens: ‘Got to be better’

[anyclip-media thumbnail=”undefined” playlistId=”undefined” content=”dW5kZWZpbmVk”][/anyclip-media]The Buffalo Bills lost their first game this season, 35-10 to the Baltimore Ravens Sunday night.

The Bills coaching staff has some important things to look at in terms of what could have been done differently, and their players are doing so as well.

The Ravens scored an 87-yard rushing touchdown courtesy of RB Derrick Henry. He would have almost 200 yards on the ground in the game.

The Bills defense allowed almost 300 yards of offense in the first half alone, allowing a 21-3 lead in that first half, not to mention the total 35 points.

Linebacker Baylon Spector took responsibility and commented on the defensive issues that allowed Henry to have the success he did.

“I gotta do a better job communicating, getting everyone lined up, gotta read the keys,” he said.

Spector, who has stepped up in the absence of starting inside linebacker, captain, and defensive play-caller Terrel Bernard, recovered a Lamar Jackson fumble during the contest and also noted the importance of repeating and communication.

“We just got to come out and be ready to play; come out and communicate,” he added. “I’ve got to do a better job of communicating. I’ve got to do a better job of getting the guys on the same page and getting everyone ready to go.”

Starting defensive tackle DaQuan Jones also chimed in on how they can examine what led to Henry’s big effort against the Bills defense.

“We’ll know when we watch the film,” Jones said. “They just kept getting them creases and Derrick is one of those backs, you give him a lane and he’ll take it to the crib and first play of the game, he did that, and I felt that got them in a rhythm and that kept them going after that.”

Special teams had a missed Tyler Bass field goal, and the Bills offense struggled to get on score board and comeback in the game.

While he did comment on the struggles in the loss, Allen also saw the positive takeaways and spoke to those as well.

“Not everything was bad in this game,” the Bills QB said postgame. “I don’t want us to come away from this saying ‘We’re the worst.’ A lot to learn from. I’m glad this happened early in the season so we can correct things.”

Allen knows a loss of this kind is both one to glean from as well as one to move on from to focus on the team’s next road opponent, another AFC contender in the Houston Texas.

“A lot to learn from,” Allen said. “We’ll watch this tape, learn from it, flush it, and look to the next.”

Bills’ Sean McDermott on Ravens loss: ‘They outplayed us’

Bills’ Sean McDermott on Ravens loss: ‘They outplayed us’

The Buffalo Bills had their first loss of their 2024 NFL season on Sunday Night Football this weekend, falling 35-10 on the road in Baltimore.

After a strong 3-0 start, the Bills seemed to be soaring following their biggest effort of this year’s campaign, and one of their strongest outings with Josh Allen under center, in a 47-10 rout of the Jacksonville Jaguars.

But the Ravens quickly grounded them in NFL Week 4, and Buffalo found itself on the receiving end of the type of dominant performance they had delivered to the Jags.

The Bills struggled on and off the field and lost in all three phases, and their head coach commented on that after the game.

“Give credit where credit is due, Baltimore Ravens came out and they beat us,” Sean McDermott said to the press. “They outplayed us. They outcoached us, and we’ve got to identify the problems and get them fixed.”

Baltimore scored early on an 87-yard touchdown run by Derrick Henry, and never looked back, dominating the rest of the way.

“Schemed up well, yes, because they executed and we really didn’t even touch the running back,” head coach Sean McDermott said about Henry’s run. “They ran what we call ‘wham’ exactly our three-technique there. We’ve got to be in better position. I know we’ve done that before, so that’s one of the things.”

It was a tough night overall for the Bills coaching staff.

The Ravens out-schemed them in this matchup, Buffalo was slow to adjust until the second half and was not aggressive on some 4th-and-1 plays, and mismanaged the following sets of downs after conversions on others.

Then there was that failed trick play.

With the Bills trailing 21-10 in the third quarter, offensive coordinator Joe Brady dialed up a trick call on 2nd-and-7 that fell apart at the line of scrimmage.

Quarterback Josh Allen lined up at receiver, while receiver Curtis Samuel lined up at quarterback, flipping the ball to Allen, who then got hit and stripped of the pass from a hit by Kyle Van Noy who had broken through to get to the QB. The target, WR Mack Hollins, had been in double coverage downfield, and the Ravens recovered the fumble.

“I think that’s something Joe and I will talk about and something we’ll learn from,” McDermott noted. “Certainly a momentum change right there.”

Obviously the timing of the play when the offense was trying to stage a comeback was ill-advised, though successful trick plays were a staple of OC Brian Daboll’s offense with the Bills, he’d scheme them in a way that got the targeted receiver wide-open downfield.

“That’s something that Joe and I will discuss at length. I’m sure he wants that call back. I do as well. We’ll learn from that and move forward,” he added.

The loss does give them a game to reflect on and learn from before turning their focus to their next opponent, another challenger, and potential playoff squad, the Houston Texans.

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Ravens put the entire NFL on notice with dominant 35-10 win over Bills in Week 4

Baltimore Ravens put the entire NFL on notice with dominant 35-10 win over the Buffalo Bills in Week 4

The Ravens were a 0-2 team searching for an identity and were heading to Dallas for a must-win matchup against the Cowboys.

After holding on to defeat Dallas, Baltimore took another big step and put the entire league on notice with a dominant 35-10 win over the Buffalo Bills at M&T Bank Stadium on Sunday night in front of a raucous crowd.

Josh Allen was 16-29 passing for 180 yards but was sacked three times on the night and finished with a 73.9 rating before exiting midway through the fourth quarter as Baltimore had a 25-point lead.

For the Ravens, it was all about the running backs as Derrick Henry logged 24 carries for 199 yards (8.3 avg) and one rushing touchdown.  Henry also had a receiving touchdown.  His running mate, Justice Hill, had six catches for 78 yards and a receiving touchdown.

Overall, Baltimore allowed 237 yards on 57 offensive plays and held the Bills to 3-13 on third downs.

‘Everybody eats’ philosophy has Bills scoring most points in the NFL

‘Everybody eats’ philosophy has Bills scoring most points in the NFL

The Buffalo Bills coined the phrase “everybody eats” as the theme of their offense for 2024, and the team’s 47-10 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars on “Monday Night Football” was the latest representation of it.

To say that everybody ate on Monday would be an understatement.

Six Bills scored a touchdown in the game, 10 players caught a pass (nine in the first half), and five players recorded three or more catches.

James Cook, Ray Davis, Khalil Shakir, Dalton Kincaid, Ty Johnson, and Keon Coleman all found the endzone. Davis and Coleman both recorded their first-career touchdowns on a special night in Orchard Park.

Josh Allen had one of the most efficient games of his career, and he was able to conduct the offense by spreading it around and keeping the defense guessing. And, if Allen is the conductor of the orchestra then offensive coordinator Joe Brady is the one writing the music.

“Everybody eats” isn’t just a phrase for Brady, it’s all he wants for the offense. Because there is trust in the offensive line, and because Josh Allen is at quarterback, Brady is free to use his multitude of skill players in different and creative ways. The creativity and simplification of the processing for Allen have him as the MVP favorite through three games. Brady is putting everyone in positions to succeed.

In a post-practice press conference Wednesday, Josh Allen spoke on the ability of the offense being elevated because they have so many different options to beat defenses:

“I think we’ve shown the ability to be in big personnel and run it and throw it, we’ve shown small personnel to run it and throw it, the run game, play action, drop back… there’s just a lot of opportunities for us to do a lot of different things throughout the game. We have different chess pieces that Joe [Brady] is using really well right now… and they are doing a great job of understanding what everybody’s role is. The ability to at any different time throw it to somebody else and they be our first read… it’s very fun. It’s easy on me and Joe’s been doing a great job of calling plays.”

Sure, the Bills lost their top two receivers from last year, but what they have now is depth at skill positions across the entire offense. And the skill position players all offer multiple flavors themselves. The running backs are threats through the air and on the ground, Curtis Samuel and Khalil Shakir can be lined up anywhere, and Dalton Kincaid and Dawson Knox can give you everything you need at the tight end position. Throw in some big-bodied boundary receivers and you’ve got a well-rounded offense.

After three weeks, the Bills (3-0) are leading the league in points per game (37.3) but the road gets tougher ahead for the Bills. Next up is a three-game road stretch (Baltimore Ravens, Houston Texans, New York Jets). It will be a grind through the next few weeks, but when things get tough for Allen and Brady, they know they’ll have someone in the supporting cast to lean on, because you can’t cover all of them.

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Bills’ Damar Hamlin emotional after MNF return: ‘It was special’

Bills’ Damar Hamlin emotional after MNF return: ‘It was special’

The Buffalo Bills had their big win of the season on the national stage during NFL Week 3, in a 47-10 home win over the Jacksonville Jaguars on Monday Night Football.

On a night of firsts for a handful of Bills, safety Damar Hamlin took the field for his first Monday Night Football start since the January 2023 contest in which he suffered cardiac arrest.

In his return to MNF, Hamlin had a strong performance with five tackles and two pass deflections.

He also got his first career interception.

While it carried significance for the 2021 sixth-round NFL Draft pick from PITT as a career achievement, it was the experience of walking down the tunnel and out to the field that resonated with him.

“Man, it was special,” Hamlin said to the media. “We all know my last start on Monday Night Football and how that game went, so to be able to come all the way back from that and have a special moment like that, it’s all God right there. I’ve been giving him the praise like crazy lately, because it wasn’t easy, but I’m super thankful to my teammates for just the support and the love. That was encouraging.”

Hamlin has recorded 19 tackles through three games this year as he’s manned Buffalo’s defensive backfield alongside Taylor Rapp. He credits his play—and the fact that he’s playing football at all—to his teammates, as playing for them is what fuels his fire.

“It makes all of the emotions way easier when you just go out there and you think about, ‘I just want to make plays for my teammates,'” Hamlin said. “It makes it all simple again.”

The Jags’ offense had a 1st-and-10 at their own 41-yard line when Jacksonville quarterback Trevor Lawrence overthrew rookie receiver Brian Thomas Jr. And Hamlin was there to take away the pass, giving QB Josh Allen and the Bills offense the ball back, which he would then throw to Khalil Shakir for a touchdown and a 27-3 lead.

The young safety’s teammates erupted with excitement when he got the pick and celebrated with and around him.

“Damar, with his first interception, the crowd went crazy, everybody ran out on the field, man, it was inspiring,” said OLB Von Miller, who took the press podium seated alongside Hamlin after the win.

His head coach was moved as well by the on-field moment.

“Damar, what a night for Damar, right?” Sean McDermott said during his press conference. “At home on Monday Night Football, getting his first interception, I believe, of his NFL career. The journey that he’s been on and how he’s persevered.”

Hamlin’s last Monday Night Football start was against the Cincinnati Bengals in the 2022 season, his second year in the NFL. He suffered a cardiac arrest during the first quarter of the Week 17 clash, in a broadcast on-field moment in which the NFL world stood still.

The Bills’ medical staff worked quickly to save his life, and he went on to make a full recovery after stabilizing in the hospital. He’s since won a starting safety position battle in Buffalo’s new-look secondary, leading to a very significant moment back on the MNF stage.

Bills WR Keon Coleman on first-career TD: ‘It’s electric’

Bills WR Keon Coleman on first-career TD: ‘It’s electric’

Buffalo got a win on Monday Night Football in front of their home crowd this week in explosive fashion.

The Bills racked up a 47-10 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars in a contest that frequently featured highlights and a number of firsts for players, including rookie Keon Coleman’s first touchdown reception.

The No. 33 overall pick of the 2024 NFL Draft took the field while the Buffalo offense was eight plays in on its third drive of the game to start the second quarter. It would mark his only catch of the night, but he made it count.

Bills QB Josh Allen found Coleman downfield for a 24-yard catch that the first-year receiver then shook off a defender to take the ball into the end zone, scoring the first touchdown of his career.

“Great play-call by [OC] Joe [Brady],” Coleman said to the media postgame about the play. “Me and [receivers coach] Adam [Henry] watched film on that, came to fruition. Deep crosser, got outside leverage, man, and just beat him to the spot.”

Through three games in OC Joe Brady’s “everybody eats” offense, Coleman has five receptions for 75 yards and the score and has been fourth on the team in receiving yards and fifth in receptions.

After the game, he shared that the first touchdown in front of the home crowd and on a national stage met his expectations completely.

“It lived up to the expectations 100%,” Coleman shared. “Just feeling the crowd, it’s electric. Getting you your first catch of the game for it to go for a touchdown I mean Monday Night Football, I don’t think you can get something else better.”

In terms of playing time, he has seen a position-high 73% of the team’s offensive snaps in Week 1 and 91% of their snaps in Week 2, making him the most utilized receiver during that period. Yet during Monday Night Football in Week 3, he only played 20 snaps (31%.)

Part of the reason was a first-quarter benching due to an unexcused non-gameday tardiness.

“I’ll mention Keon’s situation, I sat Keon for the first quarter of the game,” McDermott said during the opening of his press conference after the win. “It will be a learning opportunity for him. Really, it was an issue that dealt with being on time. He knows he’s accountable to his teammates. We addressed it. We support him, and we move forward. I thought he played a good game tonight, had that, I think it was one catch for a touchdown there, so that was good to see.”

However, his head coach was confident in how the rookie was handling the situation, both on and off the field.

“I’m just very impressed with the way Keon handled it and then to go back out there in the second quarter, I think it was the second quarter when he caught the touchdown pass. I know how important his teammates are to him, and again, this will be a learning opportunity for him.”

The Bills offense has been rolling in three straight victories to start the season, and the team’s defense has returned to form under McDermott as well to help get those wins.

Next, Buffalo will face one of the first tests of their 2024 campaign, in consecutive road games against the Ravens, Texans, and Jets.

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Bills’ Keon Coleman was benched early against the Jaguars

Bills’ Keon Coleman was benched early against the Jaguars

It was a good and bad day for Buffalo Bills wide receiver Keon Coleman against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Buffalo’s second-round rookie scored his first-career touchdown. It came as a bit of a surprise.

Not because of anything talent related, instead, it was because he was not featured much early on. Why was that the case?

It was nothing performance based.

Head coach Sean McDermott revealed following the 47-10 win that Coleman was benched. The reasoning was because Coleman was late, presumably at some point over the past week, to the Bills’ facilities during practices this week:

The Bills offense flew out of the gate in their win.

Coleman did not play in the first two drives for the team.

He eventually did get on the field and his touchdown was his only catch of the game. Coleman made it count.

Coleman will hopefully learn from that.

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