A.J. Terrell might be the most important player on the Atlanta Falcons

The Atlanta Falcons’ best and most important player might just be their cornerback, A.J. Terrell. Usually in the NFL, your quarterback is the one player you cannot lose but things are clearly different for this team.

There is a night and day difference watching the defense when they have Terrell compared to when they don’t. This means he might just be the most important player on this team.

The Atlanta Falcons’ most crucial player is cornerback A.J. Terrell

Watching the Atlanta Falcons’ defense over the past two games when A.J. Terrell is on the field vs. the past few weeks when he wasn’t, is like watching the Atlanta Braves play a nighttime game compared to when they play a daytime game.

Of course, it always helps to have his talents out on the field, but it even lies beyond that. The whole backend of the defense wouldn’t have been able to stop an FCS passing offense without Terrell on the field but now that they have him back, they have actually been able to get stops consistently.

It truly feels like the whole team plays harder when they know the stud cornerback is on the field. We knew it would hurt when he went down with an injury, but the impact it had was monumental.

Sure, the Falcons have not played good passing offenses over the past couple of weeks but it isn’t like the Panthers had the best passing offense, yet they were able to move the ball. 

This defense is not elite by any means, but having A.J. Terrell on the field actually gives them a fighting chance. They were able to settle into the Bears and Commanders games and limit those quarterbacks when they threw the ball. This is a team that was the worst passing defense in the league but managed to hold their last two opponents under 155 passing yards.