CLEVELAND, OH – AUGUST 17: Buffalo Bills wide receiver Corey Coleman (19) on the field prior to the National Football League preseason game between the Buffalo Bills and Cleveland Browns on August 17, 2018, at FirstEnergy Stadium in Cleveland, OH. Buffalo defeated Cleveland 19-17. (Photo by Frank Jansky/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
The Browns decision to send Corey Coleman to Buffalo was a big story line in Hard Knocks. The wide receiver’s status isn’t as important to the NFL.
Corey Coleman is going to have to find his third team of the season if he wants to extend his NFL career. After being dealt from the Browns to Bills early in the preseason, the higher-ups in Buffalo have decided they’re better off without him. The Bills will release Coleman rather than taking him into the regular season as a part of their 53-man roster.
This represents a pretty prodigious fall for the 2016 first round pick. He arrived in the NFL with pretty high expectations after an excellent collegiate career at Baylor. Unfortunately for Coleman, injuries and questions about his mental makeup have plagued him as a professional.
This decision validates the Browns’ decision to cut bait on him several weeks ago. The franchise endured some social media criticism from fans over giving up on the young wideout. Now that the Bills have reached the same conclusion, it makes it pretty obvious that the Browns were ahead of the curve on Coleman.
Don’t expect the wide receiver to stay on the market for long. Former first round picks get the benefit of the doubt from teams around the league. There will likely be several coaches who believe they can be the ones to unlock Coleman’s potential. No one is going to make a big bet on Coleman at this point, but handing him a roster spot wouldn’t be a huge risk for teams looking for receiver help.
From the player’s perspective, Coleman has to understand that he’s running out of chance to make a career in the NFL. The Bills don’t have a ton of talent at wide receiver. The fact that he couldn’t force his way into Sean McDermott’s plans should be a real wake up call for Coleman. His next team may be the last opportunity he has to fuli