Officers: Coleman flipped car to avoid deer, had been drinking

<p>Atlanta Falcons defensive tackle Rod Coleman swerved to avoid a deer and flipped his luxury vehicle, authorities said Wednesday. The player had been drinking but wasn't considered under the influence.</p><p>Details of Coleman's mysterious wreck, which will cause him to miss his second straight game this weekend, finally emerged after the team provided little insight earlier in the day.</p><p>Hall County sheriff's Capt. Jeff Strickland, citing an accident report, said Coleman wrecked at 4:30 a.m. Saturday.</p><p>"It says the driver stated, 'A deer ran in front of me, I tried to avoid the collision and I overturned,'" Strickland said. "It was checked that he did not receive a blood test for alcohol or drugs. It did indicate he had been drinking, but was not impaired."</p><p>Coleman walked to a nearby fire station or residence, where someone reported the accident. When an officer arrived at the scene, he gave Coleman a series of field sobriety tests, "which he passed. The officer indicated that he did not feel (the player) was impaired."</p><p>During a brief appearance in front of his locker, Coleman spoke about the wreck for the first time Wednesday.</p><p>"It's just something that happened, man," he said. "It's no big deal."</p><p>How did it happen? "It was a one-car accident."</p><p>Did it happen in the morning or the evening? "It happened Saturday."</p><p>Coach Jim Mora got downright testy when questioned about the wreck.</p><p>"No one's been secretive," Mora insisted. "We're not obligated to speak to the media about injuries until Wednesday after practice."</p><p>He glanced down at his watch.</p><p>"It's Wednesday after practice," Mora continued. "We're addressing injuries."</p><p>Mora did reveal that Coleman underwent arthroscopic surgery on Tuesday after damaging the medial collateral ligament and meniscus in his left knee. He also has a bruised shoulder.</p><p>That was about it as far as actual details from the team.</p><p>Mora was in no mood to discuss details of the accident, insisting he didn't know what happened.</p><p>"Was I there?" he said. "How the hell would I know. He doesn't even know."</p><p>The first inkling of trouble came late Saturday morning, when the Falcons (5-1) added Coleman to their injury report. He was listed as questionable with a shoulder injury. No mention was made of the wreck or his knee.</p><p>Coleman was one of Atlanta's major free-agent acquisitions during the offseason, receiving a $10 million signing bonus. Before the wreck, he was tied for second with on the team with four sacks.</p><p>Coleman wasn't at the Georgia Dome for a 21-20 victory over San Diego, and the team wouldn't discuss his absence until after the game.</p><p>Mora said Coleman showed up at the team's practice facility about 9:30 a.m. Saturday. He was still bleeding and his shoulder and knee were "banged up."</p><p>According to the coach, the wreck occurred "on one of those country roads" near the facility, which is about 45 miles north of Atlanta.</p><p>Coleman would only say that he crashed his Escalade truck into someone's yard and had to call a tow truck to take it away.</p><p>"I couldn't drive it home," he said.</p><p>Coleman said he didn't call the police.</p><p>"I just called my insurance (company) and told them to come pick up my truck," he said.</p><p>Another defensive lineman, Ed Jasper, was the first to reveal that Coleman swerved off the road to avoid hitting a deer.</p><p>"I'm just glad he's all right," Jasper said. "I told him, 'Next time, just hit that deer and bring the meat to me.'"</p><p>When asked whether a deer was involved, Coleman reverted to his old standby: "It was a one-car accident."</p><p>Mora said he spoke Tuesday with the owner of the property where the wreck occurred but didn't learn any new details.</p><p>Mora also said he was not aware of a police report being filed, which turned out to be inaccurate.</p><p>"Maybe they didn't see any need to bother," he said. "I don't know. I'm not a police officer."</p><p>The Falcons aren't sure how long Coleman will be out, though he said it shouldn't be very long. He will definitely miss Sunday's game at Kansas City.</p><p>"It's nothing serious," Coleman said. "I'll just let the doctors take care of it, do my treatment and hurry to get back on the field."</p>

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