Atlanta Falcons: 3 players who saw their stock rise in Week 8

2. Tevin Coleman, RB

The second-running back on the Falcons’ depth chart keeps proving to be a great help to them. Tevin Coleman is in his third season, and has developed into the kind of player they expected him to be when they took him in the second round of the 2015 NFL Draft out of Indiana.

Like most guys on the team, Coleman had a rough night against the Patriots a week ago. He came out on Sunday and atoned for that, when the Falcons needed it most. With the game being incredibly tight, they saw starting running back Devonta Freeman go down with a shoulder injury, but Coleman kept the ground game alive.

He had 14 rushes for 82 yards, with most of that coming off a 52-yard rumble. What’s most important about Coleman’s role on this team is that when Freeman was lost, the defense wasn’t able to shift their focus and forget about the ground game.

Coleman’s presence meant that this team didn’t have to become one-dimensional when they were down a player, which is a luxury only a few teams can enjoy. Coleman continues to make his mark as a receiver, but so far in 2017, he’s proving to have put it all together as a runner as well.