Michael Penix Jr.'s return to the football field has dominated the headlines in the NFL world right now. You can't deny it's an awesome story. He's six months removed from reconstructive ACL surgery and was still able to take the field when the Atlanta Falcons hosted rookie minicamp over the weekend.
While the next step for Penix is to compete with Tua Tagovailoa to be the Falcons' starting quarterback in training camp, he's not the only player Atlanta got back during rookie minicamp. Second-round rookie Avieon Terrell took the field on Saturday and Sunday after sitting out Friday.
Kevin Stefanski told the media on Friday that the Falcons would be holding out two rookies during minicamp due to injury: Terrell and sixth-round DT Anterio Thompson. They were believed to want to be patient with their ailing rookies, but perhaps they are further along than we were led to believe.
Michael Penix Jr.'s return is overshadowing Avieon Terrell's return during rookie minicamp
Not only did the 21-year-old take the field for drills over the weekend, he revealed he was 100% when he was asked by the media. And for a player who slipped in the draft in large part due to a nagging hamstring injury, this is the best update we could've possibly gotten with training camp months away.
Terrell's pre-draft process was hampered by this tweaked hamstring. It affected his testing numbers at Clemson's Pro Day, and triggered prospect fatigue around a guy who was an obvious first-round talent if you watched his college tape. It's not like the Falcons are complaining about landing him.
The All-ACC cornerback was drafted with the 48th overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, and the more time that passes, the more he looks like elite value at that spot. He's versatile, physical, doesn't give up the big play, and has the nose for the football. He's basically a smaller clone of his older brother.
Being 100% during training camp is one thing, but feeling 100% during rookie minicamp is a great sign. The season doesn't even start until the second week of September, so the more time he has feeling physically right, the less time it'll take him to adjust to life as an NFL cornerback. And the best part is that Terrell officially signed his rookie contract, which is fully guaranteed in a surprise twist.
The other good news here is that the injury he was dealing with isn't very severe either. A tweaked hamstring isn't the partial ACL tear that Penix was dealing with. It was definitely going to take him some time to get right, but it's nowhere near as touchy or as risky for the Falcons to get him reps.
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