49ers depth chart: Shon Coleman can help O-line woes in 2021

The 49ers depth chart experienced notable offensive line attrition in 2020, yet the return of Shon Coleman could alleviate things somewhat this year.

Remember veteran swing tackle Shon Coleman? Yeah, he’s part of the San Francisco 49ers roster.

It might be easy to forget about the 29-year-old Coleman. After all, he has yet to take a regular-season snap for the Niners ever since being acquired from the Cleveland Browns back in September of 2018. Coleman spent his first year in San Francisco on the weekly inactive list as the 49ers’ offensive line enjoyed a relatively clean slate of health.

And while that wasn’t the case in 2019, a serious ankle injury suffered that year in training camp prematurely landed the 6-foot-5, 310-pound lineman on season-ending injured reserve.

Then, with the global pandemic dominating headlines in spring of 2020, Coleman elected to opt out of last year’s campaign.

Coleman’s one-year, $1.13 million deal from last season rolls over into 2021 after his opt-out decision, and the Niners could certainly stand to benefit from his presence given some of the serious question marks they have along the O-line.

The biggest question, of course, is whether or not they’ll have enough money to re-sign perennial Pro Bowl left tackle Trent Williams, who could easily command a contract worth $18 million annually. If San Francisco can’t, there’s suddenly a glaring void at left tackle, and there aren’t exactly any bona fide options left on the team’s current roster.

Not even Coleman. He shouldn’t be viewed as a long-term starting-caliber replacement for Williams.

Yet the last two seasons have revealed the importance of a quality swing tackle. Williams, right tackle Mike McGlinchey and now-retired left tackle Joe Staley all missed games during that two-year span, and Coleman wasn’t available to sub in at any point. Instead, the 49ers were forced to go with makeshift options like then-rookie tackle Justin Skule in 2019 along with presumed starting right guard Daniel Brunskill. 2020 rookie Colton McKivitz was also given looks, too.

Shon Coleman a last-ditch contingency plan for 49ers at left tackle?

Williams’ uncertain future will be the first major hurdle the Niners have to overcome this offseason.

Even if Williams returns, last year provided more than enough evidence why a quality backup should be on the roster. But if Williams isn’t back, Coleman’s importance suddenly becomes much more apparent.

Yes, it’s been a while since Coleman has taken the field for a regular-season game. 2017, to be exact. But he did start 16 games for Cleveland that season, so it isn’t as if he completely lacks starting experience.

More importantly, he’s at least immersed in head coach Kyle Shanahan’s complex blocking system. That’ll be an advantage Coleman has over any rookie San Francisco likely brings in via this year’s NFL Draft.

The simple point here is this: The 49ers would prefer to have Coleman available to them on the roster. No, he shouldn’t be viewed as an essential piece, and even if Williams departs in free agency this offseason, inserting Coleman into the starting lineup should only be viewed as a short-term stopgap option.

Nothing more. Although last year proved having those options can be just as important, too.

If anything, Coleman at least fives the Niners another commodity for a position in need of a lot of offseason attention. That in of itself certainly isn’t a bad thing.