Falcons expect Avieon Terrell to be a ‘significant contributor’ as a rookie

FLOWERY BRANCH — For two minutes, Avieon Terrell stood with his arms dangling to his waist, his eyes and ears fixed on his brother’s answers, waiting for a media availability to end.

Take it in, because it seems rare. Nothing in the Falcons rookie cornerback’s football career is synonymous with patience.

A.J. Terrell, with the benefit of an older sibling’s perspective, knew his brother had the mindset and makings of a professional football player as a 5-year-old.

Throughout the various rungs of the youth football development ladder, Avieon often played a few age levels above his own. When he arrived at Clemson, he played in every game as a true freshman and made his first start against then-No. 12 Notre Dame.

So, why expect anything different now? Why would Avieon Terrell, ever the ace of first impressions, take a backseat as an NFL rookie?

Spoiler alert: Falcons defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich doesn’t think he will.

“I think he’s going to be a guy,” Ulbrich said, “that’s going to be a significant contributor Year 1.”

The Falcons, however, are still figuring out where Terrell will play. The 5-foot-11, 180-pounder starred on the perimeter at cornerback in college, but he also played inside as a nickel, where his tackling skills and passion for blitzing made him a natural fit with his unremarkable size.

“You can’t just pigeonhole him to say, like, ‘Hey, you’re a nickel. Hey, you’re a corner,’” Falcons secondary coach Justin Hood told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “He possesses both attributes that make a successful DB or a nickel at both.

“So, it’ll be fun to kind of see him and implement him and see where he fits. A lot of it is his growth and how fast he can pick it up as well.”

Terrell’s role, whether it be inside or outside, won’t be finalized until some point during training camp, if not the end of it, Ulbrich said. The answer will largely hinge on competition this offseason, and Ulbrich will “fit him best where he can contribute this year” within the team’s defense.

Because that’s the expectation. Terrell, drafted No. 48 overall in the second round, should see the field plenty this fall.

“The biggest thing for me was when you evaluated him, he’s making plays and he’s around the ball and then he’s an ultimate competitor,” Hood said. “At the end of the day, we’re going to play our best 11, right? We have our best five DBs, best six DBs, in the game.”

Terrell is in the process of trying to prove he’s one of them.

The Falcons return both primary starting corners from last year in A.J. Terrell and Mike Hughes. They lost nickel Dee Alford in free agency and have an open competition between Sydney Brown, Darnay Holmes and A.J. Woods, all the while waiting on last year’s rookie standout, Billy Bowman Jr., to recover from a torn Achilles suffered in November.

Avieon Terrell has participated in individual periods during OTAs, but he’s yet to get significant run during offense vs. defense sessions while working his way back from a hamstring injury that hindered his pre-draft process. In the team’s second OTA practice and first open to the media, he worked off to the side during 7-on-7 and 11-on-11 periods.

But for what he’s been cleared to do, Terrell has impressed. He talks and asks questions in Hood’s meeting room, and the manner he’s carried himself off the field has drawn comparisons to his older brother.

“I’ve been blown away by his approach,” Ulbrich said. “He does not feel like the typical rookie. He has a rare maturity. You can tell his brother’s had a lot of influence on him. A.J. is not only one of the best corners in the world, but just his approach is so — and this is not a shot at DBs — but it’s just so not DB-like.

“His approach, his demeanor, is very linebacker-ish, like the toughness that he demonstrates and that he walks around and the way he carries himself is so unique. You can definitely feel that on his brother. I’m excited about his future.”

A.J. Terrell gave Avieon bits of advice for things he wished he’d done sooner at Clemson to get on the field early, but Avieon took the initiative to prepare like a professional. He didn’t have to ask A.J. for help, he only had to watch.

“I feel like I set the standard a lot with him,” A.J. Terrell said. “And he did his part in writing his own story. And also, that’s in his DNA, too. He’s not trying to put on a front. As much as he could, he always tried to leave me out of the picture because he’s always been compared to me his whole life. So, that’s just his character as well.”

A.J. Terrell said he and Avieon have similar play styles, too.

“Not too much different,” A.J. Terrell said. “I feel like he is sticky in coverage just like I am. He’s got a knack for the ball and is just a confident player.”

That knack jumped out to the Falcons this spring. Last year, when the team drafted Bowman and safety Xavier Watts and signed undrafted free agent Cobee Bryant, the shared trait among the three was ball production. They combined for 37 interceptions in college.

Avieon Terrell finished his Clemson career with only three interceptions, and none in 2025, but he had 25 pass breakups and eight forced fumbles, the most by any defensive back in program history.

“You look at Avieon Terrell, he fits that mold, the production on the ball,” Hood said. “And ultimately, at DB, that’s what it’s about. You got to be able to get to the ball. So, you watch his film, there’s a lot of things to like.”

Somewhere in the middle of A.J.’s availability, which capped near 15 minutes, Avieon decided he couldn’t wait anymore. He turned around and took off toward the brick wall enclosing the team’s primary facilities.