Bills Get Good News on Rumored $70 Million Trade Target

Washington Commanders wide receiver Terry McLaurin.

The Buffalo Bills went into the 2024 season without a bona fide No. 1 receiver, parting ways with Stefon Diggs and instead adopting an “everybody eats” approach of spreading the ball around.

The approach worked, with the Bills putting together one of the league’s top passing offenses, but some insiders believe the team could add back a No. 1 receiver this offseason. Insiders have named the Bills a top contender to land Pro Bowler Terry McLaurin if the Washington Commanders decide to put him on the trade block, and it could be trending in that direction as contract talks have hit an impasse.

Terry McLaurin Not Happy in Washington

As ESPN insider Jeremy Fowler reported on Sunday, McLaurin is “not happy with where things are with an extension” as the team looks to lock him down for the long term. McLaurin is in the final year of his $70 million contract and the Commanders are looking to sign a new contract extension before he heads to free agency.

As Bleacher Report noted, Fowler said McLaurin has an end date in mind and that the Commanders “have a couple of weeks here to make progress” before the star wide receiver decides whether to hold out of training camp.

If the Commanders change course and decide to trade McLaurin, the Bills could be a frontrunner to land him. Bleacher Report’s Mitchel Milani noted that the Bills could use a receiver like McLaurin, who topped 1,000 yards in each of the last five seasons even though he has played mostly with uninspiring quarterbacks.

“I think Terry McLaurin would be perfect for Josh Allen,” Milani said. “He can get down the field and stretch the defense out. Having a player on the outside that can win down the field is gonna make the Bills pretty much an unstoppable offense.”

Bills Look to Keon Coleman for Bigger Role

While the Bills lost plenty of talent when they traded Diggs to the Houston Texans and allowed No. 2 Gabe Davis to leave in free agency, some insiders believe they could soon have a new No. 1 receiver emerge. Keon Coleman showed flashes of strong play in his rookie season but was hampered by a hand injury that disrupted the second half of his season, but some see him as a breakout candidate for 2025.

Bleacher Report’s Moe Moton suggested Coleman is headed to a bigger share of the team’s targets in the coming season, naming him as the team’s “most promising building block.”

“In February, the Buffalo Bills rewarded their most consistent wideout, Khalil Shakir, with a four-year extension,” Moton wrote. “Keon Coleman may have greater upside than the speedy slot receiver, though. As a rookie last season, Coleman caught 29 passes for 556 yards and four touchdowns. He missed four games because of a wrist injury. If the big-play wideout stays healthy in the upcoming term, he can lead the team in multiple receiving categories.”

Bills general manager expressed a bit of disappointment in how Coleman’s production dropped after he returned from injury but said the team still has faith in him and expects him to come back even better in 2025.