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Cole Beasley is off Twitter and refocused on his role with the Buffalo Bills.
The wide receiver opened up about his decision to deactivate his social media account, which had been the source of plenty of controversy over the past few months. Beasley turned in one of his best games of the season in Sunday’s win over the Miami Dolphins, and he said that deciding to close out his Twitter account has been a big help.
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Beasley’s Account Goes Dark
In the offseason, Beasley became a lightning rod for criticism after he expressed doubts about the COVID-19 vaccine and later shared his opposition to getting the shot. Beasley regularly got into arguments with some of his critics, leading him to de-activate the account after the team’s Week 5 win over the Kansas City Chiefs.
Speaking to reporters after the 26-11 win over the Dolphins on October 31, Beasley said he had initially stayed away from social media but said he felt a “responsibility” to speak out for those with doubts about the COVID-19 vaccine. A few controversies and many online arguments later, Beasley decided to go back to his original stance.
“But it’s good for me to get back to where I wanted to be, and it’s not on there,” he told reporters, via ESPN. “The real world is out here and not there. Most people say things on there that you don’t want to hear. And it’s definitely a weight lifted, and I feel like I did the right thing.”
Beasley has also endured some adversity this season, sometimes seeing a diminished role in the Bills offense as other targets have emerged for quarterback Josh Allen. Bills head coach Sean McDermott addressed the situation earlier this year, saying there would be games where Beasley plays a quieter role and others where he would need to take on a bigger part in the offense.
“It’s hard when you don’t get the football. And I get that,” McDermott said, via Nick Fierro of SI.com’s Bills Central. “There’s only one football to go around, and sometimes it’s not just one game, it’s two games, it’s three games and how are you going to react? And that’s some of what we look for in the character of our players, because you’re going to go through … some adversity in your career or during a season.”
Beasley’s Big Game
Beasley played a key role in the team’s win over Miami, helping to steady an offense that sputtered through most of the first half. He ended the game with 10 catches for 110 yards, his highest output of the season. As ESPN noted, Beasley was most effective in the second half, when the Bills offense finally steadied and ended the game with three consecutive scoring drives to pull away from Miami.
My instant Reactions from Bills 26-11 victory. Cole Beasley saves the day against Dolphins as offense comes out of funk. Tua isn’t very good.
Speaking to reporters after the game, Beasley also revisited a controversy from earlier this season, when he took to Twitter to complain that some home fans at Highmark Stadium were booing him. A number of Bills fans responded to say that they were actually chanting “Beas,” but the wide receiver insisted that he was hearing criticism.
“Whether some are booing or some are saying, ‘Beas,’ it still felt good playing and they were loud,” Beasley said of Sunday’s crowd, via ESPN. “So, I enjoyed it either way.”