Josh Allen believes Keon Coleman is the ideal player to fill the huge void left at the Buffalo Bills after star wide receiver Stefon Diggs was traded to the Houston Texans.
Diggs proved himself to be one of the elite pass catchers in the NFL across four seasons with the Bills, passing the 1,000-yard mark in each of them. But his stay in western New York became increasingly turbulent off the field and after falling short in the playoffs last season, the Bills opted to move on and send the 30-year-old to Houston.
In doing so, the Bills were without an obvious deep-threat receiver on their roster, and they addressed the shortage in the second round of the draft, selecting Florida State prospect Coleman with the 33rd-overall pick in Detroit last month.
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Quarterback Allen has been left hugely impressed by Coleman's performances in Organized Team Activities (OTAs), suggesting the six-foot-three, 213-pound playmaker is a perfect fir for the Bills' passing attack.
"I think his play style [is] what we needed in our offense," Allen told NFL Network. "Talking with our offensive coordinator [Joe Brady], our quarterbacks coach [Ronald Curry], [general manager] Brandon Beane and, obviously, coach [Sean] McDermott, a guy that's a big-bodied guy and can go win one a back-shoulder fade and not afraid to be a physical wide receiver.
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"I think you pair him with some of the guys we have in our room right now, I think Mack Hollins has been such a great addition so far to that room with his mentality, his mindset is infectious to others. Curtis Samuel, he's been showing up every single day ready to work. You start pairing those guys up with Dawson [Knox] and Coleman in this mix now, we're gonna have a pretty solid group that works together."
Allen and his teammates have been getting down to business with the rookie class in Orchard Park over the past week, and the 28-year-old is eager to make the most of the time as possible.
"I think it starts here in OTAs. I'm fortunate enough to have those guys in the building right now," he said. "We're throwing throughout practice. We're taking extra reps after practice. Obviously, this time [of year], you've only got a certain amount of time where you can get those reps.
"So just doing some stuff extra and finding time. We'll get that month off, if you will, in late June-early July, try to find a window where we can get together and throw again. Just make sure that we're staying on top of things, and getting as many reps as possible."