CLEVELAND -- The Cleveland Browns thought wide receiver Corey Coleman would be a consistent contributor to the offense when they selected him with the No. 15 overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft out of Baylor University, but that has not been the case.
Coleman has played in just 18 games over his two years with the Browns, catching 55 passes for 700 yards and five touchdowns for an offense that has ranked near the bottom and utilized seven different players at quarterback since the start of the 2016 season.
“I think we all want more, and I think he wants more, so I’m not saying something that I don’t think he feels,” Browns coach Hue Jackson said. “He wants to contribute more to the football team.”
For the second straight year, the 5-foot-11, 185-pound Coleman was bitten by the injury bug, as he suffered a broken hand in the second game of the season, a 24-10 loss to the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium.
After the first two games of the season, Coleman was tied for second on the team with six receptions, which he turned into 62 yards and one touchdown. Averaging 10.3 yards per catch, Coleman was the only Browns receiver with a touchdown this season at the time of his injury.
In 2016, Coleman suffered a broken bone in his right hand in the week leading up to the third game of the season and missed six weeks of play. However, the 2016 injury did not require surgery.
Since returning from injury, Coleman has caught just 16 passes for 225 yards and one score.
“I think it is a combination of things,” Jackson said. “Sometimes, he is open and we don’t find him, and sometimes, he has to do things a little bit better. That is what young players do. I just think that is where he is, but I think he is getting better and I think he has worked hard.
“The fact that he has made it through the rest of the season I think is encouraging. He just needs to go out just like all of our players, all of our young players, veteran players, we need to go play well on Sunday.”
Although Coleman will play in one less game in 2017 than he did in 2016, his production has gone down significantly, which Jackson attributes to inconsistent offensive play throughout the season.
“As an offense, we have sputtered,” Jackson said. “We need to continue to get better in a lot of different areas. Obviously, throwing the football, completing the ball can have an effect on receivers, but receivers have to also get open. It is working together.
“Corey, he has come back and he is playing. I think that is what is important for all of these young players is that they are playing and they are playing through it, and playing through not just a tough season, but also, tough times. You just have to keep working at it. These guys are really young and they have bright futures ahead of themselves, but they have a lot of work to do, too.”
