Atlanta Falcons 2020 Season Preview: A.J. Terrell

What role will rookie A.J. Terrell play in 2020?

After only a few workouts in Atlanta Falcons training camp, Dan Quinn stated first round pick A.J. Terrell was ready to contribute right away.

That’s good news for supporters of the Falcons and Thomas Dimitroff.

He has to play early and often. The Falcons secondary allowed 244.9 passing yards per game in 2019. That was ranked 21 in the NFL.

The Falcons selected Terrell out of Clemson University with the 16 pick in the NFL Draft in April. The talk around the pick was that the Falcons may have reached for Terrell with the 16 selection. Terrell fits the Quinn mold at the cornerback position. He stands 6 feet 1 inches tall. He possesses the long arms needed to match up against the growing wide receiver position on Sundays.

The Falcons showed former first rounder Desmond Trufant the door this offseason. The Falcons didn’t really add another potential starting caliber piece to replace Trufant until they signed Darqueze Dennard.

Dennard started five games for the Cincinnati Bengals in 2019. He earned a 72.2 rating on Pro Football Focus making him the highest rated returning cornerback.

Trufant was rated with a 70.2 grade at the end of last season.

Terrell will likely be competing for playing time because he was the 16 overall selection in the NFL Draft. Terrell has talent.

The COVID-19 pandemic has kept teams off the practice field this summer for Terrell to make any real impression at the NFL level so far.

The rookie also needs to adjust to the Falcons’ defense through live repetitions. There won’t be any preseason games. The Falcons could be facing sending Terrell onto the field without any game action as a pro in Week 1 against Seattle.

If he earns it in training camp, then that’s what will happen. The competition between Terrell, Dennard and Isaiah Oliver will decide the two outside cornerback slots.

Oliver and Dennard have veteran status and NFL starting experience over Terrell.

Terrell will adjust. By Week 1, he will either be a starter or a key contributor. How he progresses from there will be determined by how Terrell handles the NFL install and physical nature of matching up with the long list of different types of wide receivers in the NFL.

Terrell is in catch up mode, but his talent makes him a potential impact player from day one of his rookie season with the Falcons.

Check out the full list of Atlanta Falcons player previews here.

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