To begin his second NFL life, Ashley Lelie was given jersey No. 15 by the Atlanta Falcons.
There is a chance he could later get his No. 85 back. Dwayne Blakley, an Atlanta backup tight end, has the number Lelie wore the past four seasons with the Broncos.
Lelie is not expected to play in the Falcons’ final two preseason games, but the plan is to have him ready to become their No. 3 receiver for the Sept. 10 season opener at Carolina.
During his extended holdout from the Broncos, Lelie said he played some pickup basketball but otherwise didn’t want to risk an injury.
“Some days I would get up thinking I would be traded,” Lelie told The Atlanta Journal- Constitution. “Some days I would get up thinking I’m going to sit out the whole season.”
A day after Lelie was traded in a three-team deal that netted the Broncos various draft-pick options from the Washington Redskins, the reality of his departure had set in. The possibility of having Rod Smith, Javon Walker and Lelie in the receiving corps was enticing to a team that came within one game of reaching the Super Bowl last season.
“I’m disappointed he left,” Broncos safety John Lynch said. “I was hoping he would eventually want to come back. From the time I got here, people always talked about what Ashley couldn’t do instead of what he could do. I saw a guy who could go up and get the deep ball with the best of them. I like the receivers we have here. There’s a lot of talent there and we’ll be fine. But I think you’d be a fool to say Ashley wouldn’t have helped us.”
It has been suggested Lelie made a foolish decision to hold out, especially after he received a letter from the Broncos demanding payment of nearly $1.1 million in prorated signing bonus and fines for missing training camp.
“We would not have released him (to trade) unless he would have agreed to it and signed a contract to it,” Broncos coach Mike Shanahan said. “I really believe somewhere along the line he got bad advice. That wasn’t Ashley. Ashley wasn’t like that the four years he was here. I can’t figure out why he went that direction, but I wish him well.”
A few months ago, when Lelie aired his concerns to the Denver newspapers, he indicated his displeasure with his role as the Broncos’ No. 2 receiver, and figured he would get fewer catches in the No. 3 role this year after the addition of Walker.
Lelie slightly backed off that assertion Thursday.
“Some of that had to do with it,” Lelie said. “There were other things, but that’s all behind me now. I’m ready to play for the Falcons.”
Mike Klis can be reached at 303-954-1055 or mklis@denverpost.com.
