The Facts: Freeman is expected to be sidelined for two to three weeks with a right knee contusion, according to a source.

Diehards Line: The Falcons, who already had ruled out Freeman for Sunday's NFC South matchup with the Carolina Panthers, are confident Freeman won't miss more than the two or three games, although another source told ESPN's Adam Schefter that Freeman could miss three to four weeks. One reason Atlanta is confident Freeman's return will be sooner rather than later is because he already is going hard at rehab, trying to make progress. But his absence will extend to multiple games -- it's now just a question of how many. With Freeman out, the Falcons will start Tevin Coleman on Sunday and use fourth-round pick Ito Smith as his backup. It's a big opportunity for Coleman, who is scheduled to become a free agent after this season.