Patriots Sign CB Justin Coleman

Justin Coleman was a CB prospect who I kept my eye on after the combine. The Patriots brought in Coleman for a pre-draft visit, but instead ended up drafting Marshall's Darryl Roberts in the 7th round of the draft. Coleman played in the SEC, but for a mediocre Tennessee team. Coleman ended up not getting drafted at all and signed with the Minnesota Vikings, who released him on Sunday as part of their roster cut to 75 players. Instead of claiming him, the Patriots decided to sign him today as part of their roster moves to get down to 53.

Spider Graph Featuring Athletic Measurables:

According to Mock Draftable, Coleman ranks in the 88th percentile in speed with a 1.42 10-yard split and a 4.53 40. In agility, he ranks in the 96th percentile in agility with a 3.98 shuttle and 6.61 3-cone. In explosion, Coleman ranks in the 86th percentile with a 37 1/2" vertical and a 10'4" broad jump. Even with those measurables, Coleman went undrafted so there is a bit of a concern here. For those that follow the draft, NE Patriots Draft writer Mike Loyko wrote a detailed scouting report on Coleman which suggests that his instincts for the position are less than ideal in pass coverage and that his technique will break down at times. It should be interesting to see how he develops in New England going forward.

For now, I see Coleman playing on Special Teams since the CB depth chart has already been decided. Malcolm Butler, Tarell Brown, and Bradley Fletcher are the top 3 CBs on the team and barring injuries will play every CB snap available. Right now I have Logan Ryan as the #4 CB and ahead of Coleman considering Coleman just signed with the team. The signing also tells us that Robert McClain is probably going to be released within the next 24 hours, which wouldn't be surprising any more given how poorly he played the final preseason game and his stats compared to the rest of the CBs on the roster.