in 2015
Pre-draft On December 12, 2014, Coates announced he accepted his invitation to the
2014 Senior Bowl. Prior to the Senior Bowl, NFL analyst
Mel Kiper projected him to possibly be a first round pick. The majority of
NFL draft experts and scouts projected Coates to be a late first or second round pick. NFL scouts at the Senior Bowl said they loved Coates' sudden cuts, superior speed and big, well-developed frame, and his potential makes him a possible future No. 1 wide receiver. Coates met with team representatives from the
Baltimore Ravens after he had an impressive week of practice where he made multiple highlight reel catches. On January 25, 2014, Coates recorded one reception for 13-yards in the Senior Bowl, but had to leave the game after suffering a
groin injury. Under
Jacksonville Jaguars head coach
Gus Bradley, Coates helped the South defeat the North 20–10. He received an invitation to the
NFL Combine and completed all of the required combine and positional drills. His 23 reps in the
bench press finished first among wide receivers. On March 3, 2014, Coates opted to participate at Auburn's
pro day along with
Greg Robinson,
Dee Ford,
Chris Davis,
Tre Mason,
Cody Parkey,
Jay Prosch,
Quan Bray, and nine other teammates. He chose to only run positional drills for the scouts and team representatives in attendance. At the conclusion of the pre-draft process, Coates was projected to be a second or third round pick by the majority of NFL draft experts and scouts. He was ranked the 11th best wide receiver in the draft by NFLDraftScout.com and NFL media analysis
Charles Davis.
Pittsburgh Steelers 2015 The
Pittsburgh Steelers selected Coates in the third round with the 87th overall pick in the
2015 NFL draft. He was the 13th wide receiver selected in 2015. On May 15, 2015, the Steelers signed Coates to a four-year, $2.91 million contract with a signing bonus of $631,515. He competed with
Markus Wheaton and
Darrius Heyward-Bey throughout
training camp to be the second starting wide receiver for the season, as
Martavis Bryant was serving a four-game suspension to begin the season. Head coach
Mike Tomlin named Coates the fourth wide receiver on the depth chart to start the season, behind
Antonio Brown, Wheaton, and Heyward-Bey. On September 27, 2015, Coates made his professional regular season debut in a 12–6 victory over the
St. Louis Rams after he was inactive for the first two games. On October 1, 2015, Coates made his first career catch on an 11-yard pass from
Michael Vick during a 20–23 loss to the
Baltimore Ravens. This was his only reception of his rookie season as he appeared minimally on special teams. Bryant returned the following week, pushing Coates to the fifth receiver on the depth chart. He appeared in six games in . The
Pittsburgh Steelers received a playoff berth after finishing second in the
AFC North with a 10–6 record. On January 17, 2016, he appeared in the first playoff game of his career after Brown was unable to play after suffering a concussion the previous game on a hit from
Vontaze Burfict. Coates made two receptions for 61 yards in the Steelers' 16–23 loss to the
Denver Broncos in the AFC
Divisional Round of the playoffs.
2016 Coates competed with Wheaton and Heyward-Bey for the starting wide receiver job after Bryant was suspended for the entire season. He was named the third wide receiver on the depth chart behind Brown and Wheaton. On September 12, 2016, he received his first career start against the
Washington Redskins and finished the season-opener with two receptions for 56 yards in the Steelers' 38–16 victory. The following week, he earned two receptions for 97 yards and had the first rushing attempt of his career for a six-yard gain, as the Steelers defeated the
Cincinnati Bengals 24–16. On October 9, 2016, Coates caught a 72-yard touchdown pass from
Ben Roethlisberger, marking his first career touchdown in a 31–13 win over the
New York Jets. Although he suffered an injury to his hand during the game, he managed to finish with a career-high six receptions for 139 receiving yards and two touchdown receptions. It was reported that he suffered a broken index finger and required stitches during the game against the Jets but was still activated for the following week against the
Miami Dolphins. The injury limited him to two receptions for 14 receiving yards in the next nine games. He was deactivated for the last two games of the season (Weeks 16–17). He finished the season with 21 receptions for 435 receiving yards and two touchdowns in five starts and 14 games. The Steelers finished first in the AFC North with an 11–5 record in 2016. On January 22, 2017, in the
AFC Championship, Coates made two receptions for 34 yards in a 17–36 loss to the eventual
Super Bowl LI Champion
New England Patriots.
2017 On February 13, 2017, Coates underwent
sports hernia surgery. Coates competed with Bryant and rookie
JuJu Smith-Schuster for the vacant starting wide receiver position left by the departure of Wheaton. Unfortunately, he missed half of training camp due a knee injury, that required
knee arthroscopy and would require a recovery time.
Cleveland Browns On September 2, 2017, the Steelers traded Coates and a 2019 seventh-round pick to the
Cleveland Browns for a 2018 sixth-round pick. Coates became expendable after the Pittsburgh Steelers had acquired major depth at their wide receiver position with Bryant's return from suspension, Smith-Schuster's selection in the
2017 NFL draft, and the emergence of
Eli Rogers in Coates absence the season prior. The Pittsburgh Steelers opted to go with veterans Heyward-Bey and
Justin Hunter for their last two receiver spots. Head coach
Hue Jackson named Coates the fourth wide receiver behind
Kenny Britt,
Corey Coleman, and
Rashard Higgins to start the season. He made his Browns' debut in their 21–18 season-opening loss to his former team, the Steelers. On October 15, 2017, he caught a 14-yard pass from
Kevin Hogan to mark his first reception as a member of the Cleveland Browns. They went on to lose 33–16 to the
Houston Texans. On March 15, 2018, Coates was released by the Browns.
Houston Texans On March 16, 2018, Coates was claimed off waivers by the Texans. He played in 12 games, recording just one catch for 12 yards before being released on December 18, 2018.
Kansas City Chiefs On February 22, 2019, Coates was signed by the
Kansas City Chiefs. He was released on May 10, 2019.
Houston Roughnecks Coates was selected by the
Houston Roughnecks of the
XFL in the third round of the
2020 XFL draft. In four games played, Coates was targeted 19 times, but only caught six of those passes for 61 yards. He had his contract terminated when the league suspended operations on April 10, 2020.
Saskatchewan Roughriders Coates signed with the
Saskatchewan Roughriders of the
Canadian Football League (CFL) on December 21, 2020. He was placed on the suspended list on July 3, 2021.
Edmonton Elks Coates joined the
Edmonton Elks of the CFL in free agency on February 15, 2023. He was released by the Elks after their final preseason game, along with 17 other players as the team trimmed down its roster ahead of the season. ==Personal life==