Falcons 'Special' Draft Landing Spot for Clemson LB, Suwanee Native

The Atlanta Falcons could add to their linebacker group in the 2025 NFL draft, and Clemson's Barrett Carter offers a quality local option.

Clemson Tigers linebacker Barrett Carter has plenty of ties to the Atlanta Falcons. / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

INDIANAPOLIS -- When Clemson linebacker Barrett Carter listed the teams he's met with during the NFL combine, the Atlanta Falcons didn't come to mind -- but home is never from the 22-year-old's heart.

Carter, a native of Suwanee, Ga., grew up in the shadows of the Georgia Dome. He cheered for the Falcons as a kid, and he's seen the pipeline from Clemson to Atlanta develop over the years.

He wouldn't mind being the next on a list that includes Falcons defensive tackles Ruke Orhorhoro and Grady Jarrett, cornerback A.J. Terrell and punter Bradley Pinion.

"I played three years with Ruke; I watched Grady like all my life. Then, you've got Bradley Pinion, you got A.J. Terrell, you got all those guys," Carter said Wednesday at the NFL combine in Indianapolis. "So, it would be special to keep that Clemson-Atlanta connection going, so we'll see what happens."

Carter also said it would be "special" to return home and play for the hometown Falcons. He attended North Gwinnett High School, some 35 miles northeast of Mercedes-Benz Stadium and roughly 15 miles southwest of the team's headquarters in Flowery Branch.

The 6-foot-1, 230-pound Carter was one of the top high school players in Georgia. He was a five-star recruit by 247Sports and Rivals, with both tabbing him as the third-best recruit from Georgia in the 2021 class.

Carter found early playing time, taking the field in all 13 games and drawing one start as a true freshman in 2021. He made 16 tackles and one tackle for loss while playing 179 snaps.

The first player to wear No. 0 in Clemson history, Carter started the final 40 appearances of his college career. In 2022, he made 73 tackles, 10.5 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks while adding eight pass breakups and two interceptions.

As a junior in 2023, Carter logged 62 tackles, 9.5 tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks. He followed with a strong senior season in 2024, recording 82 total tackles, 10.5 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks and seven pass breakups.

Carter was a first-team All-ACC selection in 2022 and 2024, and he earned second-team honors in 2023. A finalist for the Butkus Award given annually to the nation's best linebacker, Carter finished his career as an Associated Press third-team All-American.

The Falcons have a question mark at linebacker.

Kaden Elliss is penciled in as a starter, but Troy Andersen has played in only nine games the past two seasons, Nate Landman's speed and coverage skills prompt concerns and 2024 fifth-round pick JD Bertrand's rookie season was spent mostly on special teams.

Atlanta would benefit from adding another off-ball linebacker to its defense this offseason, but the Falcons have other priorities, such as addressing holes in their pass rush and secondary.

Carter, however, won't require a premium pick. NFL Network draft expert Daniel Jeremiah said Feb. 20 on a conference call with reporters that he views Carter as a third-round pick.

The problem? The Falcons don't have a third-round pick -- they traded it to the New England Patriots for outside linebacker Matthew Judon in mid-August.

But sometimes, fate has its way. And if it happens with Carter, he'd quite enjoy reuniting with Orhorhoro, the Falcons' second-round pick in 2024.

"Ruke is just a big goofball," Carter said. "His play speaks for itself. But he is the most goofy, funniest guy I've ever been around. Obviously, on the field, he's locked in, he does his thing. But off the field, he's just a fun guy to be around.

"I think the Falcons probably figured that out fast, but Ruke is one of a kind."

Orhorhoro is also one of four Clemson standouts now playing on Sundays in Atlanta. Carter may be the fifth.

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