It's not hard to see why the Atlanta Falcons used the 48th overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft on Clemson cornerback Avieon Terrell. Take the family reunion with A.J. Terrell out of it, and the Falcons landed a first-round talent in the middle of the second round despite not having a first-round pick.
It was the perfect heist of a selection on paper, but things have taken longer to get going than we expected. Terrell had a rough start through the first couple of days in training camp, including a rough showing on Saturday, but the last couple of days have been a major step in the right direction for him.
He had a great showing on Monday, but today's practice offered a first glimpse at Terrell Island. During a fully-padded session of 11-on-11s, the second-round rookie managed to pick off Tua Tagovailoa--making a beautiful diving interception that was our first real glimpse of his elite ball skills.
AV incoming 😮💨@nationwide_av pic.twitter.com/xJLHWco0tG
— Atlanta Falcons (@AtlantaFalcons) August 5, 2026
Avieon Terrell had his first major highlight play of Falcons training camp
The interception marked Terrell's first of training camp, and likely his best highlight play of the summer to date. Not only was he operating out of the nickel with the first-team defense, his pick was probably the most intriguing defensive highlight of training camp that we have seen thus far
It looked like there was a miscommunication on the route between Tagovailoa and Jahan Dotson, who was the intended receiver, which allowed the youngster to swoop in for the pick. The throw wasn't great, but at least we're starting to see Avieon Terrell make positive plays like this in 11s.
According to The Falcoholic's Kevin Knight, the 21-year-old has split his time between the outside and the slot, but Terrell has certainly been making his presence known. His physicality and ball skills match that of his brother's, and off that alone, he may not be a rotational player for much longer.
Say what you want about his slow start, but he's certainly been turning a corner across the last couple of practices. Mike Hughes and A.J. Terrell seem firmly entrenched as the starting cornerback duo on the outside, but we'll see how long that lasts if Terrell 2.0 has anything to say about it.
There's a chance his emergence forces Hughes to kick inside, but since Avieon Terrell is shorter than A.J., he's probably a better fit in the nickel amid the competition. And it may not be long before the Falcons allow him to run away with the starting job as long as he keeps making plays like this.
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