Larnel
Coleman.
Larnel
Coleman.
Massachusetts
"A near 6'7", 305-lb four-year UMass left tackle with 35-inch arms and a 2020 season wiped out by the FBS independent shutdown — a Round-7 developmental swing-tackle projection where the length and frame were the entire argument."Pre-draft read
Lining up at left edge, he displays a stable, wide base and patient pass-set. His kick-slide range handles average speed rushers off the arc. His dominant arm length enables him to control pocket edges and redirect rushers with inside hand placement. In the run game, he excels on pull, hinge, or overtake blocks within zone schemes, where his length offsets footwork imperfections to reach assignments.
Mechanically, his tape is inconsistent: pad level rises on extended sets, he lunges and drops his head to punch, and his punch timing is late against speed-to-power transitions. His adequate anchor struggles against countermoves with narrow footwork. Balance and body control require improvement. His wingspan-to-frame combination is his unique asset, offering potential as a swing tackle if technique develops.
Vertical-set pass protections with a complementary zone-blocking run scheme that values athletic offensive linemen who can reach and sustain blocks on the edge.
Year 1 redshirt as a developmental left tackle, eventually a swing tackle with starter upside if technique improves.
Gap/power run scheme where he would be asked to consistently create movement at the point of attack with drive blocks.
Developmental tackle whose rare length and frame are enough to project him to an NFL system that can build up his raw technique.
UMass Offensive Line vs BYU (2018)
All-22 style OL cutup of UMass at BYU featuring Coleman on the left edge in pass sets and outside-zone reach reps.
UMass Offensive Line vs USF (2018)
OL film against USF showing Coleman''s kick-slide range and length on the left edge against Group of Five speed rushers.
2021 Dolphins Draft — OT Larnel Coleman analysis
Post-draft breakdown of Coleman''s tools, length and developmental projection as the 231st pick.
Coleman projects as a developmental left tackle, a player teams target on Day 3 for his rare length and frame. His 35-inch arms on a 6'6⅞" frame offer a foundation for an offensive line coach to build upon, provided his technique can be refined at the NFL level. The plan for an acquiring team is to invest in his physical traits, banking on their ability to translate into a swing tackle role following substantial coaching and development.
He emerged as a four-year contributor at Massachusetts, eventually securing a role as a full-time left tackle. His final collegiate season was truncated due to the pandemic, meaning evaluators relied heavily on his 2018–19 film and his performance at the Reese's Senior Bowl, where he demonstrated his tools against higher-level competition. This limited exposure meant that a full assessment of his final-year progress was unavailable.
Concerns centered on his raw technique and the absence of a comprehensive testing profile due to the cancelled combine. These factors positioned him as a pure trait-and-length bet for teams in the later rounds. He was drafted by the Miami Dolphins with the 231st overall pick as a swing-tackle body, indicating a consensus belief that he would require at least a redshirt year to improve his technique before contributing.
- 01
Rare length
35-inch arms gave him one of the biggest wingspans in the tackle class and let him land first punches before his feet were fully set.
- 02
Frame and build
Carried 305 pounds cleanly with room to add ten more without losing mobility, a body-type NFL line coaches chase.
- 03
Kick-slide range
Comfortable getting depth on his pass sets and mirroring average speed rushers to the arc, projecting as an NFL edge protector.
- 04
Four-year starter experience
Logged extensive left tackle reps for UMass, who played Power Five opponents, exposing him to a wide range of pass rushers.
- 05
Untapped upside
At his measurements, the ceiling is a swing tackle if technique catches up; staffs valued the runway more than the current product.
- 01
Raw technique
Hand timing, punch accuracy, and pad level are inconsistent for a fifth-year starter; tape often shows him lunging or ducking his head.
- 02
Limited 2020 evaluation
UMass's season collapsed under the pandemic, leaving staffs with mostly 2018–19 tape and Senior Bowl reps for projection.
- 03
No combine workout
The 2021 combine was cancelled, and no full public pro day testing profile emerged, leaving athletic thresholds unverified.
- 04
Anchor concerns
Functional against average power but walked back by long-armed bull rushers when base narrows, and he doesn't consistently sink hips.
| Yr | Team | G |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Massachusetts | 11 |
| 2018 | Massachusetts | 12 |
| 2019 | Massachusetts | 12 |
| 2020 | Massachusetts | 4 |
| Career | — | 39 |
A dash means the figure is not published by a source we trust — never a zero we invented.
Small-school, long-armed developmental tackle body whose realistic outcome was a practice-squad-to-swing-tackle journeyman career across multiple staffs.
Late-round developmental tackle with length whose upside was to grow into a swing-tackle role capable of spot starts across an NFL season if technique caught up to the frame.
High-length small-school tackle who never converted his frame into a real NFL role, cycling through practice squads and offseason rosters without an active-game runway.
Everything above is the pre-draft evaluation. This section is what actually happened — updated year over year.
Pre-draft context. Coleman entered the 2021 evaluation window as a four-year UMass starter at left tackle with tools every offensive line coach chases on Day 3: roughly 6''6⅞", 305 pounds, 35-inch arms and a legitimate small-school frame. The 2020 season, in which UMass''s independent schedule collapsed under COVID, wiped out his final tape year, and with the 2021 combine cancelled there was no full public workout to lean on. Reese''s Senior Bowl practices were his cleanest evaluation reps and confirmed the length, but also confirmed that the technique was raw for a fifth-year prospect. Consensus board slotted him as a late Day 3 developmental swing tackle.
NFL fit — Miami Dolphins. Miami used the final pick of the sixth-round compensatory run — 231st overall — on Coleman as a project tackle behind a heavily reshaped offensive line. He never took a regular-season snap for the Dolphins, spending his time between the practice squad and the 90-man roster before being waived. He subsequently caught on with the Cincinnati Bengals'' practice squad and cycled through offseason rosters as a developmental left tackle body, without ever cracking an active-game rotation.
Retrospective. The evaluation was accurate to the pick slot: a high-length, high-frame small-school tackle whose technique never caught up to his tools inside NFL windows. He extracted a couple of practice-squad seasons out of a 231st-overall selection, which is the median outcome for the slot, but the developmental bet did not convert into game reps.