Week 4 vs. Carolina
Tevin Coleman rushed 12 times for 42 yards and three touchdowns in the Falcons' 45-32 thrashing of the Saints on Monday night. He also caught three passes on three targets for an additional 47 yards. Coleman continues to work in with Devonta Freeman, who compiled 207 total yards and a touchdown of his own in the victory. It's clear that there's more than enough touches in this high-powered offense for both Coleman, who continues to see plenty of work in the red zone, and Freeman, who remains the team's lead back.
Ranked as our RB22 in PPR formats, view Coleman as a FLEX option with plenty of upside moving forward. He and the Falcons have a tough draw this Sunday against Carolina but if the previous three weeks are any indication, Kyle Shanahan will once again get both of his backs in this mix.
Week 3 at New Orleans
Tevin Coleman rushed 12 times for 46 yards and a touchdown while also catching two passes for 25 yards in the Falcons’ Week 2 win over the Raiders. Matt Ryan targeted Coleman on another red-zone pass attempt in the second half but the ball ricocheted off Coleman and straight into the air. Fortunately for the Falcons, receiver Justin Hardy snagged the ball in between defenders and came down with an improbable touchdown.
Devonta Freeman (17) had more touches than Coleman (14), but the latter finished with more fantasy points on the afternoon. Playing in a clear committee and seeing plenty of opportunities in both the running and passing game, Coleman is officially on the fantasy radar moving forward.
Ranked as our RB23 in PPR formats and our RB25 in standard leagues for Week 3, view Coleman as a flex option against a Saints team that owns fantasy’s No. 31 defense versus RBs on Monday night.
Week 2 at Oakland
Tevin Coleman rushed eight times for just 22 yards in the Falcons’ Week 1 loss to the Buccaneers but tallied 95 yards on five receptions while playing 32 snaps. Those 32 snaps were just four fewer than Devonta Freeman’s 36 and on Monday, Dan Quinn said Atlanta will continue to use a RBBC approach moving forward.
Freeman remains the Falcons’ RB1 and goal-line back so Coleman is still a risky start, even in PPR formats. That said, Coleman clearly outplayed Freeman in Week 1 and will continue to receive opportunities in the passing game. Ranked as our RB36 for Week 2, view Coleman as an intriguing RB3 moving forward.
Week 1 vs. Tampa Bay
Tevin Coleman emerged as the Falcons starting running back out of preseason last year, but a rib injury suffered in Week 2 cost him two games. By the time he returned to action in Week 5, Devonta Freeman emerged as the team's lead back and Coleman was regulated to backup duties. In 12 games, Coleman rushed for just 392 yards on 87 carries, with one touchdown and three fumbles. Dan Quinn and the Falcons said multiple times this offseason they intend to get Coleman more involved in the offense. Freeman remains the lead back in Atlanta, but Coleman should see more than 87 carries this season. Ranked as our RB47 for Week 1, leave Coleman on the bench for now.
Fantasy Upside
Devonta Freeman emerged as a fantasy star last season but Tevin Coleman was slated to be the Falcons' lead back before suffering a ribs injury in Week 2. By the time Coleman returned, Freeman was well on his way to having a career year. Coleman capped off his rookie season by rushing 87 times for 392 yards with one touchdown. He's currently behind Freeman on Atlanta's depth chart but the Falcons' coaching staff said this offseason that they want to reduce Freeman's workload in 2016. That means more touches for Coleman, who was drafted by the current regime in Atlanta, whereas Freeman was not. Coleman has homerun speed and is capable of taking it to the house every time he touches the ball. If Freeman suffers an injury, Coleman would be the RB1.
Fantasy Downside
The ribs injury wasn't the only thing that held Coleman back in 2015, as he also fumbled three times on the season. Despite Dan Quinn's insistence that Coleman will have a bigger workload this year, Freeman remains the clear-cut RB1 in Atlanta. Plus, Freeman was a significant part of the passing game last season, whereas Coleman only caught two passes for 14 yards on 11 targets. If Freeman stays healthy, Coleman will be reduced to a complementary role in 2016.
2016 Bottom Line
Coleman will remain stuck behind Freeman but at the very least, he should be one of the top handcuffs off the board this year. He needs to cut down on the turnovers and it'll be interesting to see if the Falcons make him a bigger part of the passing game, but he'll be first in line to receive carries if Freeman goes down. Ranked as our RB39, Coleman's current ADP is 14.02 in 10-team standard formats and 11.12 in 12-team leagues. If you nab Freeman early, the smart play would be to take Coleman as a handcuff late. If Freeman stays healthy, Coleman will take up a roster spot but at least Freeman owners will have piece of mind.
Week 12 vs. Minnesota
Tevin Coleman rushed 17 times for just 48 yards and lost a fumble in the Falcons' Week 11 loss to the Colts. Coleman entered the game early in the first half when Devonta Freeman left with a concussion. With Freeman out for Sunday's game against the Vikings, Coleman will start against the Vikings, who have the No. 3-ranked fantasy defense versus running backs this season. Coleman has home run ability, but he's struggled with fumbles and is likely to share touches with Terron Ward. View Coleman as a low-end RB2 and boom-or-bust flex option. For Freeman owners, Coleman is likely your best option depending on who else you have your bench.
Week 9 at San Francisco
Tevin Coleman rushed for 11 yards on three carries and caught his lone target for 10 yards as the Falcons lost to the Bucs in Week 8. Coleman is clearly entrenched as Devonta Freeman's backup and unless there's an injury won't see more touches then he received last week. Coleman has the ability to hit the home run on every carry, but Freeman is tearing up the fantasy world right now and has showed no signs of letting up. Stash Coleman away in case of an injury but for now, leave him on your bench.
Week 7 at Tennessee
Tevin Coleman rushed four times for 40 yards in the Falcons Week 6 loss to the Saints. He flashed the same explosion and quickness he had coming out of Indiana, but once he put the ball on the ground in the second quarter, he received just one carry the rest of the game. With fantasy revelation Devonta Freeman entrenched as Atlanta's every-down back, Coleman will be relegated to backup duties for the foreseeable future. He ranks as our RB43 for Week 8 and should remain on your bench.
Week 6 at New Orleans
Tevin Coleman returned from a rib injury to rush two times for three yards in the Falcons Week 5 win over the Redskins. Coleman only played on 9-of-80 offensive snaps as Devonta Freeman received every-down work in Atlanta's backfield. At some point, the Falcons coaching staff will need to ease the workload of Freeman so that he's fresh for the second half of the season, but Coleman is still stuck as the team's No. 2 back in that scenario. The rookie should see his workload increase in upcoming weeks, but he's off the fantasy radar for the moment. Leave him on your bench for Week 6.
Week 4 vs. Houston
Falcons coach Dan Quinn said Tevin Coleman (ribs) started to run this week, but is not ready to return to practice. Coleman was held out of the Falcons Week 3 win over the Cowboys and is expected to miss this Sunday's matchup with the Texans.
