After a brutal showing in their season opener last weekend, the Atlanta Falcons are looking to rebound in Week 2 against the division rival Carolina Panthers. They're hunting for Kevin Stefanski's first win with the franchise--but they're also looking to get some comeuppance against a team that has had their number in recent matchups.
Speaking of recent matchups, we saw Tetairoa McMillan torch the Falcons' secondary the last time these two teams met. In Week 11 of 2025, he enjoyed the best game of his career, catching eight passes for 130 yards and two touchdowns--which helped him become the 2025 Offensive Rookie of the Year.
That performance helped McMillan solidify himself as one of the NFL's best young wideouts, but he hasn't set the world on fire to kick off 2026. He caught just five passes for 75 yards in Carolina's opener, and at this point, he's not the only Panthers receiver this Atlanta secondary is going to have to worry about because of the emergence of Jalen Coker.
Jalen Coker is someone the Falcons have to keep an eye on on Sunday
And for as good as T-Mac's connection with Bryce Young has proven to be, Coker was the Panthers' leading receiver in the opener. In the 59-37 loss, the third-year man out of Holy Cross caught eight passes for 138 yards and two touchdowns, and clearly looked like the top option in their offense.
We talked about how McMillan fared last time around, but knowing the Falcons can't even key in him defensively will make this even tougher. Jalen Coker was great for the Panthers in the playoff game against the Rams and has become more and more of a reliable target for Young in the passing game.
The 24-year-old is one of those guys who just has a feel for the game. He's always in the right place at the right time, and is a good enough route runner that he's always open. Compared to a big-bodied guy like Tet, Coker has a different play style that goes beyond just being a big-bodied safety valve.
Coker is big, he's fast, and he's a dangerous deep threat, so frankly, the former undrafted free agent will test this Dirty Birds' secondary more because of his skillset. At 6-foot-3 and 213 pounds, it feels illegal to see a pass-catcher with his speed be able to burn defenders like that, which is bad news for A.J. Terrell.
In fact, Coker out-performed McMillan across the last eight games of 2025, so he's starting to feel like Young's favorite target--and his new extension is aging well. But both wideouts are going to make things tough on Jeff Ulbrich's defense, because if they focus too much on stopping one of them, the other will go off: and I know Ulbrich doesn't want a repeat of their last matchup.
Jalen Coker has a fantastic story that led to him becoming one of the Panthers' top playmakers, and unfortunately for the Falcons, they're running into a hype train that's full speed ahead. And if they want to avoid an 0-2 start, they're going to have to pick their poison between him and Tet McMillan.
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