San Francisco 49ers: 5 current players who won’t make 2021 roster
By Peter Panacy
No. 3: 49ers Offensive Tackle Shon Coleman
It might be a bit of a tossup determining which backup offensive tackles San Francisco elects to keep in 2021 in the wake of re-signing the perennial Pro Bowler, Trent Williams, to a massive six-year deal.
But one thing is certain: Williams’ retention pushes backups like Justin Skule, Colton McKivitz and Shon Coleman back down the depth chart, and the 49ers are likely to keep only two backup tackles on the 53-man roster with one of them likely reserved for the weekly inactive list.
The 29-year-old Coleman could actually be better and more efficient overall than Skule, who held down the swing-tackle role for the Niners the last two seasons. But the problem with Coleman is he missed the last two seasons, first in 2019 with a serious ankle and leg injury, then again in 2020 after electing to opt out amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Coleman was also a weekly inactive in 2018 after being traded to San Francisco from the Cleveland Browns, meaning his last regular-season snap came back in 2017.
Plus, it doesn’t help the 2021 NFL Draft is awfully deep with quality offensive linemen, meaning the 49ers could get both younger and cheaper than by electing to hold onto Coleman’s carried-over contract from his opt-out year.
It sure seems as if Coleman will be the odd player out here.