When the Atlanta Falcons walked into Day 2 of the 2026 draft, general manager Ian Cunningham had already run through the scenarios. Trade backs. Positional cliffs. Contingencies if their board got wiped. They never thought Avieon Terrell would be available, and when he was, it changed everything.
Before they were ready to move down. But then a simple question from a franchise legend reframed the entire room: “Who are the guys you wouldn’t trade off of?”
That question came from Matt Ryan, and Cunningham admitted afterward that his words crystallized something for him. Terrell was at the very top of that list. They didn’t think he’d be there at No. 48. He was. And the Falcons didn’t hesitate to send that draft card up to the podium.
Matt Ryan made sure the Falcons stayed put and drafted Avieon Terrell at Pick 48
Now let’s get one thing straight: Avieon was not selected because he was A.J. Terrell’s younger brother. Cunningham was explicit about that. The grading process was independent, dispassionate, and strictly about football.
“Avieon's his own man,” he said. “He’s tough, competitive, scrappy, plays the ball the way we want our guys to play.”
Years earlier, Falcons area scout Shepley Heard was at a Monday night practice for Clemson Tigers football when a young defensive back kept flashing across the field.
He leaned over and asked who it was. “That’s A.J.’s brother.”
By the time Terrell declared, Heard’s pitch to the front office was simple: turn on the film.
- 27 pass breakups since 2023 (tied for third most in FBS)
- Clemson career record for forced fumbles by a DB (eight)
- Third team All-American, first team All-ACC in 2025
- Plays bigger than his size, willing tackler, relentless competitor
As Dabo Sweeney put it, Terrell “plays longer than he is” and is still physically growing into his frame. For a Falcons staff obsessed with speed, physicality, and competitive temperament, the evaluation almost sold itself. They didn't have to even look at the pre-existing ties to the front office.
The fit in Atlanta’s secondary is almost unfair
Alongside A.J. Terrell, the Falcons already feature Jessie Bates III, a three time second team All-Pro and Xavier Watts, a Defensive Rookie of the Year finalist coming off a five-interception rookie season.
Cunningham even admitted they didn’t expect this many corners to still be on the board when they picked. The board fell in Atlanta’s favor, and they were “rewarded.”
You can never have enough good corners, a lesson Cunningham said he learned from Mike Zimmer, and now the Falcons may have one of the deepest, most versatile secondaries in the NFC.
Sometimes draft steals happen because of luck. This one happened because the Falcons knew exactly what they had in Avieon Terrell, and thanks to Matt Ryan’s question, they knew they couldn’t risk losing him.
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