With Tevin Coleman heading out west, there were some who thought Devonta Freeman could be poised to be a breakout workhorse RB candidate this season. I don’t know how big that camp of people was, but if you were in it, you are undoubtedly panicking right now.
Freeman ran 11 times for 22 yards in Week 2. Keep in mind that this rushing total is an IMPROVEMENT over his rushing total for Week 1. Now you see why this guy’s stock has plummeted. Freeman did catch 3 balls for 42 yards in Week 2 to keep his day from being a complete loss, but the red flags are still all there. Freeman actually increased his snap count over Ito Smith in Week 2–he and Smith had split the snaps 50-50 in Week 1 (much to everyone’s surprise)–this week Freeman held a sizable 62%-38% edge.
The Falcons’ offense, while it hasn’t exploded yet, still has the potential to be formidable. As of now, Freeman is still the lead RB in it which is of course a position that (in theory) carries value. But seriously, you have to wonder how many more duds he can add to his 19 rushes for 41 yards season stat line before that stops being true–or he loses his job. Keep in mind, Smith has run for literally triple Freeman’s yards per carry this year. That’s a huge discrepancy.
For the record, the Wolf has Freeman as his RB32 this week as the Falcons head into an interesting matchup against the newly Luckless Colts, 8 spots below the ECR. Based on Freeman’s performance so far this season, you may have to wonder out loud if that’s even a little generous.
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