There are plenty of targets available and a capable quarterback at the controls, setting up a near-ideal situation for Buffalo Bills‘ rookie wide receiver Keon Coleman.
The 21-year-old Coleman joins a receiving corps that features only one player — Khalil Shakir — who has already caught a pass from field general Josh Allen during an NFL regular season game. With WR1 Stefon Diggs and WR2 Gabe Davis departing this offseason, Coleman will immediately compete for a share of the 241 lost targets that the two former Bills earned last year.
With a potential path to significant playing time awaiting, Coleman is naturally one of the higher-end rookie prospects in the fantasy football world. Sports Illustrated fantasy guru Michael Fabiano ranked the “Top 10 Rookies to Targets” and placed Coleman at No. 8 overall, one spot ahead of Chicago Bears’ pick Rome Odunze.
Coleman, the No. 33 overall draft pick, is one of six first-year wide receivers listed. Two quarterbacks, one running back and one tight end round out the group that is topped by Arizona Cardinals’ WR Marvin Harrison Jr. with New York Giants’ WR Malik Nabers at No. 2 overall.
8. Keon Coleman, WR, Buffalo Bills
Coleman might not be the best wide receiver in the 2024 class, but there’s no question that he ended up in one of the best situations. The Bills traded Stefon Diggs and lost Gabe Davis, leaving behind 241 targets in the offense. Coleman will absorb plenty of them, making him a potential sleeper in the fantasy world. — Michael Fabiano
RELATED: Replacing Diggs with Coleman dubbed Bills’ ‘best offseason move’
Coleman led the Atlantic Coast Conference with 11 touchdown receptions in 2023. At the least, he projects as a down-field threat with good contested-catch ability for Allen and Co. As for becoming an every-down receiver, there still appears to be room for development, especially in the areas of run blocking and digesting the massive NFL offensive playbook.
The 746 yards and seven touchdowns that Davis accounted for last year seems like a realistic goal for Coleman in 2024.
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