BIOGRAPHY
Justin Coleman was born on March 27, 1993, in Brunswick, Georgia. He is a cornerback for the Detroit Lions in the NFL.
Coleman attended Brunswick High School in Brunswick, Georgia, where he was a two-sport star in both football and track for the Pirates. As a sophomore in 2008, he tallied 71 tackles, four pass-break-ups, three sacks and intercepted two passes. As a junior in 2009, he totalled 83 tackles, six pass-break-ups, and six interceptions, and also returned a kickoff for a touchdown. He helped lead the team to an undefeated district season as a senior in 2010.
Also a standout in track & field, Coleman finished second in class 4-A at the state championships in the 300m hurdles (38.82s) and fifth in the 110m hurdles (14.61s) as a senior. He also competed as a sprinter at Brunswick, posting personal-best times of 11.04 seconds in the 100-meter dash, 22.67 seconds in the 200-meter dash and 52.34 seconds in the 400-meter dash.
Regarded as a four-star recruit by Rivals.com, Coleman was ranked the No. 17 overall cornerback in the nation and the No. 16 overall prospect in the state of Georgia. He was also named to the Rivals250 Team. He was rated as a three-star recruit by Scout.com, and was considered the No. 45 overall cornerback. ESPN.com ranked him the No. 30 overall safety.
On May 3, 2015, the Minnesota Vikings signed Coleman to a three-year, $1.59 million contract as an undrafted free agent that included a signing bonus of $20,000.
On September 9, 2015, the New England Patriots signed Coleman to their active roster from the Seattle Seahawks' practice squad. Upon his arrival, Coleman was designated as the fifth cornerback in the Patriots’ depth chart, behind Malcolm Butler, Tarell Brown, Logan Ryan, and Bradley Fletcher. On March 7, 2016, the New England Patriots offered Coleman a tender sheet as he became an exclusive-rights free agent. On April 13, 2016, Coleman signed a one-year, $525,000 exclusive-rights tender. Coleman entered training camp as a backup cornerback. He competed with Jonathan Jones, Brock Vereen, E. J. Biggers, Cre'Von LeBlanc, V'Angelo Bentley, and Darryl Roberts to be the fourth cornerback on the depth chart. Head coach Bill Belichick named Coleman the fourth cornerback to begin the season. He was listed behind Logan Ryan, Malcolm Butler, and Cyrus Jones.
On September 1, 2017, the Seattle Seahawks traded their seventh round pick (205th overall) in the 2018 NFL Draft to the New England Patriots in exchange for Coleman. Head coach Pete Carroll named Coleman the fifth cornerback on the Seahawks’ depth chart to begin the regular season. He was listed behind Richard Sherman, Shaquill Griffin, Neiko Thorpe, and Jeremy Lane. Coleman was also named the first-team nickelback to start the season.
On March 12, 2018, the Seattle Seahawks placed a second-round restricted free agent tender on Coleman. Coleman retained his role as the first-team nickelback and also began the season as the third cornerback on the depth chart, behind Shaquill Griffin and Neiko Thorpe. On October 28, 2018, he made four combined tackles, broke up a pass attempt, and intercepted a pass by Lions’ quarterback Matthew Stafford, that was intended for wide receiver Golden Tate, to seal the Seahawks’ 28–14 victory at the Detroit Lions in Week 8. In Week 13, Coleman collected a career-high ten combined tackles (eight solo), deflected a pass, and was credited with half a sack during a 43–16 victory against the San Francisco 49ers. On December 10, 2018, Coleman made one tackle and returned a fumble recovery for a touchdown as the Seahawks defeated the Minnesota Vikings 21–7 in Week 14.
Coleman returned a fumble for a 29-yard touchdown during the fourth quarter after Jacob Martin stripped the ball during a sack on quarterback Kirk Cousins. He finished the season with 55 combined tackles (41 solo), ten pass deflections, one interception, one fumble recovery, one touchdown, and was credited with half a sack in 16 games and five starts. He received an overall grade of 67.3 from Pro Football Focus, which ranked as the 54th best grade among all qualified cornerbacks in 2018.
On March 14, 2019, Coleman signed a four-year, $36 million contract with the Detroit Lions.
