Tevin Coleman unlikely to be a Falcon in 2019, per D. Orlando Ledbetter

On a boring old Monday with a month or more to go until the beginning of training camp—and the abundance of relevant football news that accompanies it—you’d be hard pressed to find much worth talking about. However, the football world threw us a bone of sorts today, with the Atlanta Journal-Constitutions’ D. Orlando Ledbetter dropping a veritable bomb of insider information.

D-Led went on ESPN Charlotte’s The Wake Up Call this morning to talk about the Falcons’ offseason and some of the most interesting topics of the past few weeks. Our very own Cory Woodroof covered Ledbetter’s take on the Julio situation earlier today, but that wasn’t the only illuminating thing he had to say about our favorite team.

A particularly relevant tidbit came about when D-Led was asked whether he thought 2018 would be Tevin Coleman’s final year in Atlanta. Ledbetter’s reply is below.

“Oh yeah, no question about it. They can’t keep all of the weapons. Coleman’s in the same situation Michael Turner was in San Diego a few years back...Coleman will find several suitors on the open market. The Falcons—after paying Freeman—can’t really pay another running back top dollar next year.”

While this isn’t shocking news by any means—many fans and analysts have long held the belief that the Falcons either can’t afford to give Coleman his market value, or they wouldn’t want to from a roster-building standpoint—it’s the first time we’ve heard a beat writer speak so strongly about it. Thomas Dimitroff had previously expressed optimism about the team’s ability to bring Coleman back in 2019, which had given some of us hope for keeping arguably the best RB duo in the league around long-term.

Ledbetter did not cite any specific sources for this knowledge—so it’s fair to question whether or not this was merely speculation. However, D-Led is certainly around the team a lot and could have a good read on how the Falcons’ feel about Coleman. With Julio asking for more money and several major contract extensions coming up for players like Jake Matthews and Grady Jarrett, Coleman could be the odd man out in 2019.

What are your thoughts on this report? Do you see the Falcons finding a way to keep Coleman in 2019 and beyond, or do you see him finding a starting job for another NFL team?