Bills team owner Terry Pegula and general manager Brandon Beane had a joint press conference on Wednesday to answer questions in the wake of the firing of Sean McDermott, ahead of the team's first head coaching search since 2017.
One of the first questions asked of Beane, who not only was retained, but promoted, was about the criticism that the Bills did not have a good enough receiving corps for Josh Allen to work with. Before Beane could explain, Pegula cut him off to basically throw McDermott, the coaching staff and wide receiver Keon Coleman under the bus.
Brandon Beane fielded a question about not getting enough help at WR, including drafting Keon Coleman.
— Henry McKenna (@henrycmckenna) January 21, 2026
Terry Pegula: "Can I interrupt? ... The coaching staff pushed to draft Keon. ... That was Brandon being a team player." pic.twitter.com/vAn3e1SpP2
"Can I interrupt," said Pegula. "I'll address the Keon situation. The coaching staff pushed to draft Keon. 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. You know, he's taken, for some reason, heat over it. And not saying a word about it. But I'm here to tell you the true story."
To Beane's credit, he later said, "He was my pick," regarding Coleman. Perhaps the fact that there is video of him talking about wanting to draft Coleman at the combine made it easier to admit it.
"I'm glad Coleman ran that (4.57 40). It'll help to get him" 2 months before the draft pic.twitter.com/vj18EgvqyJ
— Billy M (@BillyM_91) January 21, 2026
Whoever really wanted to draft Coleman, it doesn't really matter. He's been a disappointment and ended up benched multiple times this season. The real issue is how Pegula handled this moment, flat out blaming the coaches and absolving a GM who clearly was involved in the decision.
Not to mention Coleman is still on the roster, so Pegula just created a whole new awkward situation a brand new coach is going to have to deal with. Considering the reaction online and the fact that ESPN's First Take quickly pivoted to talk about the press conference while it was still going on to examine what a mess the situation in Buffalo is right now, you have to think this press conference did not go the way the owner was expecting.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Bills Owner Blames Sean McDermott for Drafting Keon Coleman, GM Says ‘He Was My Pick'.
