ESPN Names One Final Move for Atlanta Falcons Before Training Camp

ESPN’s Aaron Schatz suggested one final move the Atlanta Falcons should make before the start of 2024 training camp in July.

Atlanta Falcons cornerback A.J. Terrell / Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

NFL rosters are hardly set at the end of June. Even toward the end of the preseason in August, NFL teams can find new additions in free agency or still make trades.

But ESPN’s Aaron Schatz suggested that the last move the Atlanta Falcons should make before training camp isn’t an addition. Rather, he argued the Falcons should ensure to sign cornerback A.J. Terrell to a contract extension.

“Terrell might have been the best cornerback in the NFL in 2021. He may have been below average in 2022. He was back up in 2023, finishing 15th in success rate and 35th in coverage DVOA among qualified cornerbacks,” Schatz wrote. “What can I say? Cornerback stats are inconsistent and hard to predict. Nonetheless, Terrell is easily considered the most important player on the Atlanta defense behind maybe safety Jessie Bates III. 

“The Falcons picked up his fifth-year option, but now they need to get Terrell signed long term so he doesn't leave for another team in 2025.”

Terrell’s journey from rising star to slight disappointment is probably orchestrated best through Pro Football Focus’ cornerback rankings. In June 2022, PFF rated Terrell at No. 3 among all NFL cornerbacks. He made second-team All-Pro during the 2021 season.

But each of the past two offseasons, including this summer, Terrell didn’t make PFF’s top 32 cornerbacks list. This year, he wasn’t even included in honorable mention.

Schatz, though, considers cornerback to be a fickle position and doesn’t expect his performance the past two seasons to impact his future with the Falcons.

To Terrell’s credit, he outperformed his PFF cornerback ranking according to the PFF player grades. Terrell finished 21st among cornerbacks who played at least half their team’s defensive snaps in 2023 according to PFF’s grades.

He recorded 34 combined tackles, including 4 for loss and a team-high 11 pass defenses. But Terrell hasn’t intercepted a pass since the 2021 season.

It will be very interesting to see how the Falcons view Terrell and his future with the organization. But Schatz is correct – if the team sees Terrell as a cornerstone to its defense, then it would be best to extend the 25-year-old before the 2024 season begins.

In four years with the Falcons, Terrell has posted 43 pass defenses and 4 interceptions. He’s also had 247 combined tackles, including 11 tackles for loss and 4 forced fumbles.