TheThe Atlanta Falcons had no first-round pick in this year’s draft thanks to the trade-up for edge rusher James Pearce. Their first selection didn’t come until the middle of Round 2, which they used on Clemson cornerback Avieon Terrell, the younger brother of their top cornerback, A.J. Terrell.
During his time at Clemson, Terrell mostly played the boundary, but he did put in 110 snaps in the slot last season. As he begins his first year in the NFL, it hasn’t been clear what role he will play for the Falcons as of yet.
New head coach Kevin Stefanski offered some clarity on that question today, telling reporters that Terrell will see snaps both outside and at nickel.
Stefanski said CB Avieon Terrell will get looks outside and in the slot. #Falcons
— Marc Raimondi (@marcraimondi) July 29, 2026
This is probably the right way to go about it. Finding where Terrell fits best with Jeff Ulbrich’s defense should be a matter of trial and error rather than trying to force a square peg into a round hole, or a 5-foot-11 defensive back into the boundary position.
Since the Falcons placed starting nickel Billy Bowman Jr. on the PUP list Wednesday morning, we wouldn’t be surprised to see Terrell get more time in the slot to begin training camp. The team also signed veteran Darnay Holmes for added nickel depth.
Aside from Bowman, Atlanta placed offensive tackle Jawaan Taylor, inside linebacker Troy Andersen and outside linebacker DeAngelo Malone on the PUP list. Defensive lineman Zach Harrison and rookie defensive tackle Anterio Thompson opened camp on the non-football injury (NFI) list.
This article originally appeared on Falcons Wire: Kevin Stefanski clarifies Falcons rookie CB’s role on defense
