Tevin Coleman, running back for the Atlanta Falcons, has reached the end of his rookie contract and is now a free agent. For the past few years, he has generally shared the carries with Devonta Freeman. But after Freeman had a season-ending injury early in the year, Coleman had to take the bulk of the carries for the rest of the season. What happens next for him may depend upon what kind of role he seeks at this point.
2019 NFL Free Agent: Tevin Coleman
After Week Six, Freeman was ruled out for the rest of the season making Coleman the lead back. The effect was oddly not really noticed in an increase in carries, due in part to the Falcons having a pass-first offense and also having to play from behind sometimes. But he still had career highs in most categories, racking up exactly 800 rushing yards. He also had his first season of 1,000 yards from scrimmage and nine total touchdowns.
On one hand, he had a couple 100-yard rushing games despite not having a single game with 20+ carries. On the other hand, he had a couple stinker stat lines in there too as the starter (14 yards in one two-week span). Looking at his receiving stats, since his rookie season he has always had 250+ receiving yards including one 400-yard season, and 11 career receiving touchdowns. It’s possible that he may serve better as a receiving back than a lead halfback. The question now is what kind of role he may want. But in the right place, he’d be a good asset for a team to look at.
Possible Fits
If Coleman is okay with still being essentially a change-of-pace back, then returning to Atlanta would work pretty well (or if he just likes playing for them). Freeman and Coleman have been a good combo over the last few years. Now if he’s looking for perhaps a bigger role, he may have to look elsewhere.
One fit that could work out for him regardless is the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Their running back situation is quite uncertain at the moment, as they still don’t know if Ronald Jones will pan out or not. Coleman could potentially get a good share of carries there; and also, he could become their primary receiving back, which is something they didn’t have last year at all and is starting to become more important for teams to have.
Some other places where he could carve out a good share of carries include the Baltimore Ravens or the Oakland Raiders. And those are also both teams that could benefit from his receiving ability. If he’s still going to be a change-of-pace halfback but not in Atlanta, teams like the Miami Dolphins, New York Jets, and Houston Texans could all benefit from having him as an option on their roster.
Last Word
It’s hard to say right now what the best path for Coleman would be, because he’s had some great games with few carries, and also some pretty poor games. If a team wants to invest in him as a lead back, they probably should not invest a huge amount of money in him in that pursuit. Whatever the case, whoever gets him needs to make sure they give him some looks in the passing game.
Given how effective the combo of Freeman and Coleman has been in the past for Atlanta, it might just be in the interest of both parties to continue forward. If that does not happen, there will be teams like the Buccaneers and Ravens where he could have a chance to carve out a good role for himself.
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