The Chicago Bears have added another offensive lineman.
The team announced the signing of former Cleveland Browns tackle Shon Coleman on May 17. The Bears also waived veteran punter Ryan Winslow in a corresponding roster move.
Coleman, 30, was a third-round pick for Cleveland (76th overall) in 2016. He played in seven games as a rookie and started all 16 the following year in 2017. The Browns traded Coleman to the San Francisco 49ers in August of 2018 in exchange for a seventh-round selection in the 2019 draft, but he hasn’t played since largely due to injury issues.
Winslow, 28, inked a reserve/futures contract with the Bears in February. The veteran punter enter the league as an undrafted free agent in 2018, when he also signed with the Bears. After getting cut by Chicago that year, he bounced around the league, spending time with the Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers, among other teams.
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Coleman: Background & Stats
Coleman played his college ball at the University of Auburn, but a leukemia diagnosis in 2010, the year he was one of the school’s top recruits, kept him off the field until 2013.
After beating cancer, Coleman backed up former Tigers left tackle Greg Robinson in 2013 before taking over as the team’s starter at the position during the 2014 and 2015 seasons. The 6-foot-5, 310-pound Coleman played in 32 games with 25 starts at Auburn, entering the draft after his junior campaign in 2015.
After playing in seven games for the Browns as a rookie in 2016, Coleman won the starting job at right tackle the following year, starting 16 of 16 games. He played in 1,044 total snaps on offense that year, earning a 61.4 overall grade from PFF. He allowed six sacks, nine QB hits and 64 total pressures while getting flagged 14 times.
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Injuries Have Plagues Coleman Since 2018
The Browns traded Coleman to the 49ers in 2018. He didn’t play that year, sitting behind a deep O-line that included starters Joe Staley and Mike McGlinchey. Coleman suffered a fractured fibula and a dislocated ankle during the 2019 preseason, and both injuries kept him off the field the entire season.
He hasn’t played since.
Due to his history with cancer, Coleman elected to opt out of the 2020 NFL season due to concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic. The 49ers released him in 2021 with an injury settlement after he suffered a triceps strain in the team’s preseason finale that year.
He landed on the Indianapolis Colts‘ practice squad in January 2022, but was released on May 10.
Now, he’ll get another shot in the Windy City, where he’ll likely be competing against Teven Jenkins, Lachavious Simmons and Julién Davenport at right tackle. He could also be in line for a swing spot, so he’ll be competing against second-year tackle Larry Borom and rookies Braxton Jones and Zachary Thomas, among others.
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Bears Sign Former Browns Starter, Waive Veteran